"Mrhhh..." Kitzi's ear flicked lightly, trying to home in on his parents' footsteps. It took him a few minutes to realize that his parents were impossibly far away right now. Right, I'm in SAIA, he reminded himself and sighed. Isn't that just peachy? I'm stuck in a place that doesn't even obey the laws of physics. And I got told that I'm only blind because my real parents didn't get me to the right doctor after my birth. He cursed quietly. If I had not been adopted... If I had grown up in my Clan...
Sighing quietly, Kitzi got up. "If, if, if," he muttered. "I shouldn't think about that too much. I grew up in Nonav, and I don't regret that." Okay, and now say it like you mean it. The fox cursed again, louder this time. "Whatever. I'm here, I'm blind, and I'm NOT going to spend the rest of my life whining about it."
He slid out of the bed and scratched his bare torso. Now, where did I put my clothes? And where's my cane? A quick pat on his legs told him that he was still wearing his regular pants. Oh, right... I just took off the robe before going to bed, he remembered and nodded. "So... where's my robe?"
Seconds later, somebody handed him the missing item. "Thanks, Dante!" he said as he put on the robe. "Didn't even notice you. Sorry about the silly rant, I didn't mean to come off as-" A forked tongue slid over his cheek, causing Kitzi to freeze. Oh no. This isn't happening. This is not what I fear it is... He reached out with a trembling hand. Eventually, he touched the snake head that was hovering next to him. The tentacle head nuzzled his hand affectionately. Help.
Something touched his left side, and Kitzi was fairly certain that another tentacle had found his cane. It's okay, Kitzi... just a few extra appendages helping you to get dressed. That's no reason to panic. This is perfectly normal... don't freak out... don't freak out... Just remember what Dante told you. They react to your mood. I just need to calm down. Breathe in... breathe out... relax... He sighed quietly when he felt the tentacle heads retreating.
"Okay, now what?" Kitzi asked himself after a quick trip to the bathroom. "When is Dante supposed to come back? ...and what time is it?" He massaged his forehead, trying to come up with a plan. I could just wait for him. Or rather: I should just wait for him. Right. I'm going to stay here. Here... in this boring room. For God knows how long. Waiting until Dante comes back from his- "-date," Kitzi finished the thought aloud. "He's dating Yasma. Right... he could be gone for hours. Or days. Who knows what Cubi do during a date?"
He gritted his teeth, trying desperately to avoid the conclusion that seemed inevitable by now. Well, since he's going to be gone for a few hours at least... He bit his lower lip. As long as I stay away from that staircase, I'll find my way around. No problem. As long as I keep track of the turns I take, I'll be able to map out a large part of this floor, and Dante will never know! A few careful steps, and the doorknob was within reach. Come on... do it... unless you want to cling to Dante like a helpless child...
"I'm not helpless," Kitzi hissed and opened the door. "I can find my way around this place." He made a quick sweep with the cane to make sure that he was not about to walk into somebody. After taking a deep breath, Kitzi followed the corridor to his right. The few other students he passed on his way didn't pay him much attention, even though he heard a few whispered questions about his cane. But that's okay, he told himself. They're just curious. And nobody poked fun at you, so all is well.
When he had explored the corridors around his room, Kitzi leaned against a wall to take a break. This place shouldn't be too hard to figure out. Mostly straight corridors, connected at right angles. All I need now is to figure out what important rooms are on this floor. Other than the infirmary, of cou- His train of thought was interrupted by the arrival of two students. Their idle chatter didn't disturb Kitzi, but they were approaching him from a direction that should have been impossible. There is no corridor there... or at least there shouldn't be one, Kitzi thought, letting the students walk past him.
When the students were gone, Kitzi carefully examined the area from where he had heard them coming. "Odd," he whispered, letting his hands run over the wall. "Can Cubi walk through solid objects?" Just as he was about to let go of the wall, his hands brushed a wooden frame. A door? He let his hands wander over the area inside the frame. No, it's not wood. Feels more like glass... just... not quite. He frowned. "If anything, they came from here," he told himself. "So... is this maybe some sort of hidden door?" The fox pushed lightly against the surface. "How is this supposed to wo-" His hand slid through the glassy surface.
"Well, this is new," he muttered, carefully stepping through the surface. I think I should be more surprised or freaked out by this... glass membrane, but at least this thing didn't mess up any dimensions. The thought made him smile. Right. It's just the architect showing off by installing a sort of glass curtain. That's a bit eccentric, but I'll live.
Letting his cane touch the floor in front of him, Kitzi made his way through the space behind the glass membrane. Judging by the slight echo and the quiet voices in the distance, he was almost certain that he was not in a corridor anymore. Even though large halls usually feel colder than this, so I'm getting mixed signals. In the end, he decided not to speculate too much about it. Might as well ask Dante later.
After a few minutes of slow walking, the cane touched another glass surface. Here we go again, Kitzi thought and stepped through the membrane. Immediately, the sounds of the space behind him became more distant, as if he had just stepped into another world. What if that's exactly what it-... No. No. Don't even think about it, Kitzi. He suppressed a shudder. But maybe I should just go back. Back through this weird hall and to my room. Yeah, that would be-
{{{You look lost,}}} an unsettling voice said, making Kitzi jump.
"Doctor Ink!" he yelped and took a small step backwards. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you coming."
{{{That may be because I had been standing here the entire time,}}} Ink told him and chuckled quietly.
"...oh," Kitzi replied sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. "What're you doing here then, if I may ask?"
There was a pause. {{{Considering that you already had your placement test, you should know by now that I work here,}}} Ink finally replied.
"No, I mean... right here, right now. You wouldn't stand here without a reason, surely..." Way to go, Kitzi... interrogate the possibly creepiest guy you met so far...
Ink hesitated again; Kitzi could almost feel the doctor giving him a weird look. {{{I... work here,}}} he finally repeated. {{{Right here, even. You're standing right in front of the infirmary.}}}
Kitzi blinked and cocked his head. "...are you sure?" he asked before realizing how idiotic the question sounded. "I mean," he hastily added, "this doesn't fit with my internal map... the infirmary should be... a few corridors and corners that way..." He pointed in the general direction of where he had expected the infirmary to be, painfully aware that he must look like some crazy idiot.
{{{Quite the conundrum,}}} Ink admitted. {{{At least for somebody who apparently doesn't know what he just did.}}}
"What do you mean?"
{{{That's... complicated for somebody who only got here less than 24 hours ago.}}}
The younger fox frowned, then cursed. "It's about that glass curtain, right?"
Ink chuckled quietly. {{{That was a mirror, Kitzi.}}}
Mirror? Kitzi asked himself. No, that's impossible. You-
The doctor had either read his thoughts or had interpreted his expression correctly. {{{Oh, but Doctor Ink, you can't walk through mirrors!}}} Ink exclaimed in what Kitzi assumed was a consciously bad impersonation of him. {{{Well, Kitzi, that "knowledge" is exactly what normally stops young Cubi from wandering into extra-dimensional spaces without supervision.}}} Kitzi felt his mouth going dry, but Ink either didn't notice his look of shock and horror or chose to ignore it. {{{Although I am somewhat surprised since you should "know" that you can't walk through solid objects. But I guess you somehow concluded that it should be possible... you should tell me one day, it could make the first lesson in that field easier for future generations!}}}
Kitzi shuddered. I walked straight through some messed-up dimension. AGAIN. I could've come out anywhere. Or nowhere! He sank to his knees and wrapped his arms around himself. "My God..." he whispered and shook his head.
{{{There, there,}}} Ink said soothingly and tugged at Kitzi's upper arm. {{{Why don't you come inside and have a cup of tea? Nothing bad happened, after all. In a few decades, you will look back at this day and laugh.}}} He helped the shuddering fox to his feet and guided him into the reception room of the infirmary.
"Why are you doing this...?" Kitzi finally managed to ask after Ink had guided him to a chair and had given him a cup of tea.
{{{I like to share a nice cup of tea,}}} Ink answered calmly. {{{When you get older, you will learn to appreciate such things.}}}
"No, I mean... the mirror... thing."
{{{Oh, that.}}} The doctor considered the question. {{{I guess we do these things because we're too lazy to roam this large building the normal ways,}}} he finally replied.
Kitzi was just about to give a sarcastic reply to that when the infirmary's front door opened. "-and I told them that," a female voice said, then stopped abruptly. "Oh, sorry, Doctor Ink! We didn't know you had a patient right now!"
{{{No, it's quite okay, Merabi,}}} Ink quickly said. {{{He's not a patient. Kitzi, meet my First Aid class. I had been waiting for them when you showed up.}}}
"Ah... uh... pleased," Kitzi said and waved in the general direction of the sounds coming from the door area. "I guess I'll get going then..."
"Aw, man, I had been hoping he'd be a volunteer," a deep, male voice moaned.
"Mostly because it's your turn to volunteer today," another Incubus commented, prompting snickers.
{{{No, Rikudo. Kitzi was just-... well, actually...}}} Kitzi suddenly had the feeling that everybody in the room was watching him. {{{Kitzi, would you like to earn some early class credit?}}}
The blind Incubus opened his mouth to reply, then quickly closed it again. Wait. Think about it. No hasty replies. He frowned lightly. "I... I'm not really volunteer material, Doctor," he finally said. "You know, what with me not really being in the need of first aid and all that."
{{{Oh, that won't be a problem. Trust me.}}}
Kitzi could hear one of the assembled students starting to snicker. It's never a good sign to hear a psycho say that sentence, he thought. "I... uh... no, thanks, really. I should probably leave. Right now."
{{{Dante would approve of it, you know?}}} Ink asked innocently just as Kitzi got up. {{{He'd congratulate you for getting credit for my classes, actually. After all, it took him years to get the points you could earn in just an hour or two. And most of that time will be spent on theory, so your volunteer action will effectively be reduced to just a few minutes.}}}
"I... I guess that maybe... I think-" Kitzi stammered helplessly, desperately trying to find a good reason not to volunteer.
{{{Wonderful! I wish more students would show this sort of spirit when it comes to volunteering!}}} Ink quickly guided Kitzi into the room the placement test had been held in. {{{Just sit down here, Kitzi. Oh, and place your lower arm on the table, palm facing downwards. Yes, just like that.}}}
This is a terribly stupid idea, Kitzi thought while Ink talked with his students about spells and anatomy. And I somehow doubt that Dante will congratulate me. In fact, he might throw a fit and keep me locked up in our room for my own protection since I proved to be too gullible to survive without his help. ...assuming that I actually survive this hour...
Kitzi's musings came to a halt when Doctor Ink patted his back. {{{And armed with knowledge, we come to a first practical test. Merabi? Rikudo? You will handle an example case. Then, we will discuss how you handled it. You may use any and all spells and abilities, just like in a real situation requiring first aid.}}}
"Uh, Doctor Ink, do I have to do anything special now?" Kitzi asked, once again feeling everybody's eyes on him.
{{{Just act naturally, Kitzi,}}} Ink replied cheerfully. {{{So, without further ado, your test begins...}}}
Kitzi twitched when he heard a knife being rammed into the table. The pain signals coming from his hand apparently bypassed his brain and went straight to the vocal cords, causing him to scream incoherently. Only after a few seconds did his consciousness process all the new information, leading Kitzi to a very clear summary of the situation: "YOU FRICKEN STABBED ME!"
{{{...now.}}} Ink said calmly.
MY GOD, GET OUTTA THERE! PSYCHO'S TRYING TO KILL YOU! JUST RUN! Kitzi tried to pull his arm away, but the knife kept his hand pinned to the table. GET IT OUT! QUICKLY! He frantically touched the knife, trying to figure out where the handle was.
{{{Notice the patient's reaction,}}} Ink narrated. {{{He is acting as expected, trying to increase his freedom of movement in order to run or fight back. Now, it's naturally hard to apply proper first aid to a patient who is moving. Let's see how our two candidates are going to deal with it.}}}
"Don't do that!" the Succubus called Merabi snapped, apparently having noticed that Kitzi was tugging at the knife.
"Why's he using his tentacles?!" Rikudo shouted, tugging at Kitzi's wings.
Ink chuckled quietly. {{{Ah, yes. I forgot to mention that Kitzi hasn't quite mastered his Cubi abilities yet. So he can't be expected to have full control over his tentacles in an extreme situation like this.}}}
In the middle of the chaos caused by him and the two students, Kitzi managed to get a proper grip of the knife and finally pulled it out. It took him half a second to realize that that decision didn't exactly lessen the pain. Quite on the contrary, the now completely open wound hurt even more than before, and Kitzi guessed that the increased blood flow played a role in it.
Ignoring his panicked yelps, Merabi grabbed the hand that was holding the knife. "Rikudo! Keep him pinned! He's losing it!"
"Give me a minute!" Rikudo shouted angrily. The Cubi had jumped onto Kitzi's back and had wrapped his arms around the wounded Cubi's neck.
"That's more than I can spare! So... STAY!" Merabi wrestled with Kitzi's hands and finally pulled down the one holding the knife in one swift motion.
Kitzi let out a strangled gasp when he felt the knife slamming into his injured hand again. "OH, FOR THE LOVE OF FU-" The rest of the sentence was cut off by a tentacle that had quickly wrapped itself around his muzzle. Similar tentacles started to wrap themselves around his torso and wings. Being doubly pinned like this only heightened Kitzi's sense of panic, leading to him struggling wildly against his bonds.
{{{In case you've just joined the activities, these two Cubi are trying to heal their fellow student,}}} Ink commented and sighed dramatically.
"Tighten your grip!" Merabi ordered the Cubi that was keeping Kitzi immobilized with his wing tentacles. "I don't want him to break free while I cast the spell!"
Kitzi howled in pain when the tentacles around his chest squeezed with greater force than he would have thought was possible. The pain that came from Merabi removing the blade suddenly seemed like a minor nuisance, compared to the feeling of cracked ribs and the inability to breathe. After what seemed like hours, the tentacles around him abruptly retreated, letting him collapse onto the floor. Kitzi wheezed and coughed for a full minute before realizing that the assault had apparently ended, just like his hand had stopped hurting. "Oh gawd..." he whined quietly.
{{{Two minutes,}}} Ink said and started to pace. {{{That's not too bad, I guess. Now. Does anybody have anything to say? Good things, bad things?}}} When nobody spoke up, the doctor sighed. {{{Fine. I'll make a few general observations then.}}} He stopped his pacing next to Kitzi and gently let his hands roam over his back. Then he took a closer look at the hand. {{{The wounds have healed nicely. Almost no scarring, and the little bit here should heal naturally. Nice work with the spell, Merabi.}}}
"Thank you, Doctor Ink!" the Succubus quickly replied, sounding happy and relieved.
{{{However, you also stabbed the patient,}}} Ink added, causing a few students to snicker. {{{Next time, disarm the patient before making sudden moves.}}}
"Yes, Doctor Ink." Merabi whispered.
{{{Rikudo, you broke... three ribs, if my quick check was correct. Additionally, you almost cut off the patient's air supply. Needless to say that this is unacceptable, considering that you two were only supposed to heal a stab wound in the hand area.}}}
"He kept struggling!" Rikudo snapped. "How was I supposed to-"
{{{With spells?}}} Ink asked. Although he hadn't raised his voice, it was very clear that the doctor did not appreciate such replies to valid criticism. {{{You should know various helpful spells by now. You could have stunned or paralyzed him. Or you could have induced sleep. Or how about simply neutralizing the pain signals, just like we discussed last week?}}} For a few seconds, nobody made a sound. Even Kitzi had stopped groaning. Finally, Ink sighed again. {{{Very well. Now, before we go on, I'll just heal those ribs. Hold still, Kitzi...}}}
Kitzi groaned quietly when he felt an odd warmth spreading across his back. I pray that the "going on" part doesn't include more tests, he thought. I wouldn't want to get killed in a freaking First Aid lesson.
{{{There, done,}}} Ink finally said and helped Kitzi to his feet. When he was reasonably sure that Kitzi wouldn't collapse, he let go and addressed his class again. {{{Since the last test had been more... intense than I had anticipated, I will cut Kitzi's involvement a bit short. Just one demonstration on how to do it correctly, and our young volunteer will be free to go.}}}
"Can't I simply go right now, Doctor Ink?" Kitzi groaned quietly.
{{{I would like to set a positive example in terms of healing here, Kitzi. Just to let them know how to properly deal with things.}}}
Well, he's a professional, so it should be less horrible than the test, Kitzi told himself. "I... guess you're right..."
{{{Wonderful!}}} Ink exclaimed. {{{Say... do you still need that robe?}}}
"...why?" Kitzi asked, suddenly feeling very concerned again.
{{{It would make the scenario much more believable, and it's quite educational to show how to heal wounds that are partially hidden by clothes.}}}
He's got to be kidding me. I've had this robe for years. My mother made it for me! He opened his mouth to say just that, but something held him back. Or... I could just behave like an adult and acknowledge that even nice people like Dante told me to get something new. "Fine... if it makes you happy, Doctor Ink," he sighed. Anything to get it over with.
Ink sighed happily. {{{Oh, how I wish that more Cubi were this cooperative!}}} A few of the assembled students coughed nervously. {{{Just move a little bit away from the table... yes, just like that. Now. Everybody got a good view? Questions can wait until after the demonstration. The wound technically won't be lethal, but it's in everybody's best interest if Kitzi doesn't have to suffer very long, understood?}}}
"Wait... why technically not lethal?" Kitzi asked and crossed his arms in front of his chest, determined not to take them down until he got a reply.
{{{It means that your body will react to my precision cut as if it were lethal, but you'd easily survive for one or two hours before actually dying, so there is plenty time to heal you,}}} Ink explained. {{{So, if we're all done chatting, I suggest we start- now what?}}} The doctor was silent for a few seconds. {{{Fa'Lina, you're interrupting my lecture, so you could at least be polite enough not to give me a cryptic order.}}}
Must be telepathy, Kitzi guessed and frowned. I wonder what they're talking about; Doctor Ink seems to be annoyed.
{{{Oh,}}} the doctor suddenly muttered. {{{That... changes things. Thanks for the heads-up, I'll cancel the- ...what? Are you serious?}}} He started tapping his foot. {{{I see,}}} he finally whispered and sighed.
"Something wrong?" the Succubus called Merabi asked timidly.
{{{Let us continue with the lesson,}}} Doctor Ink said, completely ignoring the question.
He sounds... anxious, Kitzi silently observed and let his arms hang by his side, sensing that this was a very bad time to show resistance. "I'm ready when y-GHHHHHHHHHH!" Something had abruptly sliced across Kitzi's chest. The young fox clutched his chest and felt something warm on his hands. Blood? He shook his head in disbelief. Ink's voice suddenly sounded very distant, as if the doctor was standing at the other end of a long tunnel. Kitzi tried to say something, to call for help, but he couldn't hear any words coming out of his mouth. I'm dying. The realization robbed him of his last strength and made him sink to his knees. That psycho... he lied to me... lied... God, I really should... should...
Oh, don't worry, an inner voice suddenly whispered. You will.
And with that, Kitzi lost consciousness.
---
Author's Notes:
- First of all: llearch is my hero. :hug
- I deeply apologize for the MASSIVE delay, but a number of things kept me occupied. Among them is the fact that this chapter had the most plot revisions ever, which in turn led to me banging my head against the wall as I tried to evaluate the long-term consequences of each plot idea.
- My interpretation of "mirror space" is loosely based on what I speed-read in the old SAIA RP (while looking up description notes about Doctor Ink), but so far, it should fit into the regular universe (mostly because we didn't see it in use very often, so the conflict potential is low).
- The next chapter is ready to be posted, but I'll delay it a little bit (so I can at least start with chapter 10 in the meantime). Should be up in a few days, I guess.