Wasted

[Iƪƪia]

For some reason, the distance seemed longer than normal. Illia had been beginning to think that they would never make it back, as every stride she took beheld five more in the endless pathway. With every slight step, time slowed, again and again, until it seemed like they were barely moving at all.

Then they were there. They'd made it, although Illia hadn't a clue as to how.

All at once, time began to speed up again as the chimera crashed into the steps of the academy. Luckily, there hadn't been anyone around to witness the strange sight. However, the same couldn't quite be said about inside the academy.

The few people they passed looked at them with a combination of curiosity and fear plastered across their faces. Normally, she might have returned the gaze with a malicious gaze or an innocent smile, but none of that mattered now.

They just needed to get help. That was all that was on her mind as Illia, dragging Z with her, crashed through the infirmary door and pretty much collapsed on the ground.

[ωΘĿƒ]

Doctor Manner had been having a slow day.

Very slow, to be exact. Usually, he'd get the one unicorn that just needed to sprint through gym class with all the grace and beauty imaginable until they came crashing down, complaining of a sprained ankle, or that one Wolpertinger that was absolutely sure they could run faster through the forest than their Walpertinger friend, and ended up with a pulled neck muscle because they had not been looking where they were going, and had gotten their antlers caught in a tree.

Something like that always happened, and then someone would come limping in, complaining of a minor injury that he could only dab with some disinfectant or cast a quick healing spell before they again marched out happily, bragging that "it hadn't hurt that much" or "I only cried because there was something in my eye". Same old, same old. Maybe that was why he hated kids so much... They lied through their little injured teeth.

Well, today he'd been spared that atrocity, of course until the doors exploded inward and a chimera toting a disguised dragon plopped themselves down on his infirmary floor. Then, he could have almost wished for one of those snotty unicorn brats.

Almost, but not really.

"Get me a stretcher!" Manner barked, turning to his staff of underworked grad student nurses. He taught them the magical arts of healing, and it was his newly appointed duty as head doctor to teach them how to properly deal with situations like this one.

Crane had made sure to keep him busy with them after he'd leaked some of his plans to the kids...

"Come on! Hurry up! Get him on that stretcher! No, god dammit! Don't move his head! Keep his body straight! He may have spinal damage!"

Manner watched as the students hastily lifted the injured dragon, placing him with neat surgical perfection on the stretcher and wheeling him away to be treated.

"Start with some blood infusion! He's losing it fast!" Manner barked one last command before jogging up to the chimera that brought him in.

Hey... Didn't he know these two?

"What happened?" He asked, that last thought tugging at the back of his mind. He knew them from somewhere...
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[Iƪƪia]

Illia remained where she had fallen, staring at the ground. She was gasping, though unsure if it was purely because of the fatigue. Then, she endeavored to control her breathing, but with little success. Giving up, she glanced up at the doctor and heard him ask a question, but she wasn't sure what it was. Whatever! She needed to tell him what happened.

"We... Town... Shot... " She tried to explain.

She was on the verge of hysterics as she tried to find the right words. No good. Everything she said only came in short, hurried gasps. Placing her hands on her temples, she shut her eyes tightly. Why was she suddenly so upset now? Not much had changed. She just needed to calm down. The chimera remained in that position until she was confident that she could at least form a semi-coherent sentence.

"He was... That vampire... White... He... He shot at us..."

Not quite a sentence, but good enough for it's intended purpose.

[ωΘĿƒ]

The calm, practiced expression of doctoral profession dropped as Manner listened to the words coming from the confused and jumbled chimera.

White? Cornelius White? He had done this?

Oh, that wasn't good. That was in direct violation of White's agreement with the school, a blatant act of violence against the treaty Crane and he had signed. What the hell was that conniving old vampire trying to pull by - what had the chimera said - shooting children? And during the daylight hours too! This was terrible!

He'd heard there was still some tension after what happened between White and Crane in Colleger, but this-? This was worse than Daniel had mentioned. This was much worse!

Manner took a quick look back at the scrambling students, barking orders to them as he reached for the phone by the wall.

"Treat him for gunshot wounds! Get that infusion started! I want to know exactly where he was hit! -- Yes? Is this the office? Get Crane on the line. This is important -- No! No! You idiots! Get a tray and disinfect before you slice him open! I swear these grad students are going to be the death of-- Crane? yes, yes. It's about White. Seems he's shot one of the students. In broad daylight. No indication of a struggle, other than the bullet wounds, of course. Yeah, I don't think it was justified. In any case, we need -- stop that! I want gloves on! I don't care if you're scrubbed down completely! We use gloves here in the twenty first century! -- Hmm? Oh yes. We need to lock down the school and get the Shadowfiends on finding White. Dark's coming soon, and if he shot at this kid unprovoked then I doubt he'll wait at the front gates."

Manner listened to the sound at the other end calmly. Or, as calmly as he could under the circumstances...

"Forget White. Forget the lockdown. I'll handle him, but I want this kept quiet... You should know better than to jump to conclusions, Doctor. White is a vampire, not a savage. He will have had some kind of reason for this attack."

"Understood." Manner set the phone back on the receiver, and went to the nearest sink to wash. As he did, he took a quick look at the chimera that brought the dragon in. Nothing much. Just some stress and a little fatigue. He called one of the grad students over to help as he gloved up.

"Get her some water and a little something for the nerves. I want an in detail report by the time I'm done with him."

So saying, Manner left to go see how far the rest of the students had gotten. The one remaining approached Illia timidly. He wasn't exactly sure what to do...

"Uh, hi. I'm Albert, and... and... I'll go get that water."

He came back a few seconds later with a paper cup and a plastic tray of pills.

"Um... Take these and wash it down with this..."

He was trying not to shake. This was his first real emergency.

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[Iƪƪia]

Still sitting on the ground, Illia's desultory thoughts had strayed from the events in town to what had been said over the phone. Crane wouldn't be defending White, would he? After all, he tried to kill them! In broad daylight at that! How could anyone defend that?

She put her thoughts on hold for a moment to glare at the person in front of her. Although she wasn't sure exactly what the pills were for, it didn't seem to matter right now. Swiping them out of his hands, she gulped down the pills and water before throwing the cup on the ground and falling backwards into a chair.

Illia buried her head in her hands. It was throbbing now. Probably because of all the erratic thoughts swimming through her mind. As she sat there she felt her guilt begin to lift. Slowly, it was being replaced by sheer rage. What was there to feel guilty about? This was all White's fault! He was just waiting for the perfect opportunity to attack them! He did this and she would make him pay for it somehow!

She then complimented her thoughts by muttering a string of curse words under her breath.

[ωΘĿƒ]

Albert was still standing there. He had picked up the cup he'd handed Illia, and was scraping his thumbnails across it nervously as he grasped the cup between his hands. The sound was hollow and shaky, and he didn't like it, but it was harder than it seemed to stop.

He didn't want to disturb Illia or anything... but he really needed to know what had happened. Doctor Manner was already mad at him as it was, and he really didn't need another strike against him.

Taking a deep breath and chucking the cup into one of the many trash cans around the infirmary, Albert inched up to Illia.

"Yeas um... I know you're upset but ah... I... I sort of need to know exactly what happened. Like, the um details and stuff..."

It hurt more to hear them said than it did to actually say them. Did he really sound that weak? Oh well. Don't dwell on it. He needed to know what White had done.
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[Iƪƪia]

Once again, Illia cleared her mind to shoot an empty glare at the person still in the room. Certainly he didn't deserve to receive any amount of hatred from her. After all, he was only doing his job. However, that mattered little now. She wasn't in the mood to bother with anyone. Including weak, little staff members.

Ah well. It was safe to assume that he wasn't going away. Inhaling a deep breath, she turned away from the man - What was his name? Had he said? Well, Whatever! As she ran through the events in her mind and prepared to tell the story in as few words as possible.

"Well, we were in the cafe and we were talking to White - or trying to. You know, the guy's a jerk. And he was such a bastard to me! And then... Um... Well... Z didn't like that so he... He kinda attacked him... And then... White pulled the gun..."

That wasn't right... It just sounded like White acted in self-defense! Just like he planned. Damn it! She had to explain better.

"But... But that's what White wanted! He just provoked us so that he'd have a reason to kill us!"

That was a little better. Although, she had to admit, it did sound a bit unbelievable.

"Anyway, after that we went outside - 'Cause vampires aren't supposed to come out in sunlight, right? But White... He didn't know the rules. So he follows us outside and tries to kill us again! Then Z attacked him - in self defense, of course - and I ran outta there and that's when he was... Shot. Then he got away and I carried him back up here. And that's it..."

That was what happened, but it still sounded like they could be blamed for it. Well, they would just have to hope that these people were smart enough to see the truth.

[ωΘĿƒ]

Albert pushed the wire rimmed glasses farther up his nose in nervousness. So... White? He shot them? But they attacked him first, right? No wait - the girl had said that he wanted them to attack him. But... that didn't make any sense. How could he make someone attack him? Why would he want someone to attack him?

He wasn't good at this. It was probably the reason he was here with Doctor Manner instead of over at the PI school. He was good at fixing things, not figuring people out.

This girl... She really looked bad though. Whatever happened, he was pretty sure she and her drag n friend got the worse end of the deal, even if they'd attacked White first.

But... he'd have to tell Doctor Manner that White was provoked... What would that mean to the girl and her friend?

Albert didn't want to think about it. He was a med student, not a police officer, not a Private Investigator. He did wounds, not people.

"Um, okay. I'll make sure to tell the Doctor everything you said."

He was still a little shaky, but he was getting better at this "talking" thing. Hopefully, the Doctor would know what to do once he got out of surgery...

Albert scuttled away, leaving Illia alone.
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[Iƪƪia]

Alone again, Illia was left contemplating the consequences she might be faced with. She wasn't sure if anyone would care about the truth of the matter after all. They'd only see that they struck the first blow and White acted purely in self-defense. That was it.

So then what would happen to her? What kind of trouble could she get in?

Maybe expulsion? Or maybe even the police would be involved? Would they go easy on her seeing as how she had almost gotten killed? Unlikely. When has anyone ever gone easy on her? That's it, they're screwed. This was their fault. End of story.

Then again... Illia hadn't really done anything, had she? She didn't attack White; Z did. She didn't even act in self-defense; she ran. So how could they blame her for anything? If they decided that White was justified, they'd put the blame on Z, right? Of course. She didn't have anything to worry about.

Satisfied, she leaned back with a sigh. Those pills must be working for her to be thinking so rationally again.

[ωΘĿƒ]

The procedure had taken six hours in all. It was pretty long considering Doctor Manner was not qualified for this kind of surgery. He did small things, like a broken elbow or ribs. The one bullet retrieved from the dragon student's body had been embedded near the base of the spine. It looked like someone had been going for the opening in the back of the skull, and missed just slightly. Still, there had been some nerve damage, and if the kid had been human, he'd have been paralyzed his entire life.


But he wasn't human. He was a monster. And the people who had treated him were monsters. There had been monstrous equipment, never before seen by man, and monstrous magics, never before conceived by man. And at the end of it all, though he could have been paralyzed, he was only stuck with a bottle of pain meds and a wheelchair out the door. They'd given him a walker in case he felt any sudden pain, but Manner knew he'd never use it. Kids like that never used the proper medical devices they should, and he was even a little worried that the kid would gulp down all his pain meds at once and get some kind of addiction.

Stupid kids... Angering a vampire like that. He deserved a hell of a lot more to show for it, but there was only a small scar on the back of his neck, and a wake of exhausted medical staff behind him.

Besides, he was a dragon. Dragons didn't go down easily, especially when human inventions like guns were involved. It would have taken much more to actually kill him, though he may have been paralyzed. A vampire should have known that. It begged the question: Why did White not use his own monstrous power to take down another monster? It would have been much more effective. He'd almost killed the kid as it was.

But perhaps Daniel had done the right thing in not accusing White first and foremost?

Doctor Manner came out into the waiting room, fully briefed on the situation and toeing behind him a group of dog tired medical students wheeling a grinning kid in a wheelchair. The doctor stopped where Illia was, and gave his speech.

"He'll live. Just keep him away from vampires and keep him on his pain meds."

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[Iƪƪia]

Six hours. Six long hours she had been forced to wait. Certainly, Illlia had contemplated leaving on several occasions, but decided against it every time. It would have seemed very uncaring if she left. So, for six hours she waited, amusing herself by lifting a strand of her hair half an arm's length away and watching as she dropped it back down to frame her face.

Finally, there was movement in the room as Doctor Manner stopped before her to explain the situation. She didn't bother looking up at first for fear that her expression would show her feeling of annoyance at having to wait for so long. That wasn't right. She shouldn't look annoyed. She should look relieved if anything.

"Right..." She muttered forcing a smile.

She looked down, wondering what she should say. Well, just what were you supposed to say to someone you had previously left for dead?

[ωΘĿƒ]

Z wheeled his way up to Illia, grin ridiculously wide. If he'd been worried by anything - losing his life, if Crane would crack the whip on White, why Illia had run - he wasn't showing it.

"Check it out. I can do wheelies with this thing!" He snickered, his voice frail but still happy.

"Oh no you don't!" Doctor Manner growled. "You aren't going to put yourself back on that table in my infirmary!"

"Aw, but doc I'm bored!"

Z took a second to cough for the cameras. Unfortunatley this triggered a little bout of pain in him. He grimaced as it welled up like a blister, then quickly settled back down. The Doctor could only stand there and laugh.

"Finally you little brats get what you deserve for making my life so difficult! Now go on and remember to take your pills in moderation!"

Z shook his head slightly, dazed as the pain faded, but he was soon smiling again, if not a little worriedly.

"Eheh.. That hurt... Did you have to wait long, Illia? They doped me up, so for all I know it could be the year six thousand."

He seemed earnest to get a reply, but he still felt that jumble of questions tugging at him. All of them about White and Illia. He shoved it aside for her sake.

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[Iƪƪia]

Despite her efforts, Illia couldn't stop her smile from faltering a bit. Well, at least he hadn't mentioned anything about the running away thing. Well, not yet.

"Oh, it didn't seem like it was long at all!"

She sounded as honest as she possibly could. It's not like she could complain under these circumstances. It would be best not to give Z something else to worry about, anyway.

"I'm... Just glad that you're okay..."

It wasn't a lie, but for some reason it sounded forced. Perhaps she was just imagining things. The six hour wait had left her feeling tired, after all. Yes, that must be it.

[ωΘĿƒ]

Z smiled at that. Really? She was glad he was fine? For some reason, this made his chest feel nice and warm. He waved the attending grad students away, and parked his wheelchair. Then, slowly - very slowly - he got up.

He could feel again, and he was feeling great. Well, as great as could be expected after getting shot by a sadistic psychopath vampire. Z strethced his arms out, then his back, making sure everything was in working order. He winced a little as he stretched the section of his back near his neck. It was still sore there, and he could feel the stitches move as he stretched.

Other than that though, he was ready to roll!

"Okay, let's get outta here before they try to feed me some of the nasty hospital food I've heard so much about."

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[Iƪƪia]

Illia's eyes widened in surprise as she watched Z stand up. Should he be walking so soon? Well, it wasn't like anyone would be able to keep him down for very long. At least he didn't appear to be in a lot of pain. Probably one of the pros to being a dragon. They were built tough.

She stood up gratefully as she didn't care to stay here much longer either. Taking Z by the hand, she cautiously led him out. The halls were pretty much bare by now, as expected. Everyone must have gone to their dorms by now.

All the while Illia had been thinking about the events that had transpired mere hours ago. She would have been more than happy to not bother to just ignore it all, however, she felt that she should say something. Stopping short, she quickly glanced around to see if anyone was near before wheeling around to face Z.

"I... I'm sorry... That I wasn't any help...

Short and clearly forced this time. How could she apologize if she wasn't really sorry? Certainly, were she given the chance to redo this day, it would end with much of the same results. Still, apologizing felt like the right thing to do, and Illia was confident that Z wouldn't notice the hesitance. Either that or he'd pretend there hadn't been any.