[closed] hange, yes: vol.2 (the apothecary)

[wingbound]

WHO: shingekis
WHAT: turns out the people who never talk about their feelings is extra susceptible to the heartfreeze disease. everyone is shocked.
WHEN: july event!
WHERE: levi & eren's apartment
WARNINGS: shingeki no kokoro

::

Extra OOC information:
Known afflicted: Gabi, Reiner, Historia?
Surprise afflicted that will be revealed in log: Eren
Surprise afflicted that may or may not be revealed in log: Levi
Non-afflicted: Jean, Mikasa, Hange?

::

[ After Gabi scares the shit out of Levi during a quest, and he turns to Hange as he already knows they're part of the potion brewing crew, it doesn't take too long to find out that Gabi's not the only one suffering from the disease... ]

[ As the completion of the cure draws closer, they figure to start gathering the afflicted Scouts and those willing to ease their suffering in Hange's apartment, however as it turns out, running an alchemy lab from an apartment leaves very little leg (or butt) room, so in the end, everybody who showed up (and their +1s...) get shuffled into the much more unencumbered apartment next door belonging to Eren and Levi. ]

[ The ground rules will, of course, be laid out before entering as to avoid another sand incident: outside clothes and shoes must be left in the wardrobe by the door, absolutely no exceptions, unless somebody wants to be folded twice and thrown into the hallway. Any snot covered handkerchiefs must go into the special basket marked "biohazard", and there's several hand sanitizer spray bottles around just in case. ]

[ Assuming everyone is capable of following basic hygiene procedures, eventually they will all get served tea (yes, even Reiner, though he's probably getting an extra long stare in the face as the cup is being set down) at least once, possibly more, depending how long it takes. (Those shivering will also receive a throw blanket or two with the implicit instruction to not get disgusting body fluids on it.) ]

[ The apartment is clean and has little furnishing, but there's a nice big couch with some armchairs and a soft carpet in the living room, and of course a wide screen TV picture box. If anybody wishes to tune in to the latest Annika episode, they're free to do so. There's... maybe some leftover food in the kitchen, most notably stew in the fridge that seems to contain little pizza squares?.. but the pantry and most of the other cabinets are instead filled with tea, if anybody goes looking around. ]

[ There is also a (secretly cursed) Roomba that seems especially keen on hanging out on the walls today, and a terrifying cute Yamask shyly hanging about. A void cat might also join the party at some point and yowl until it receives a share of the pizza stew. ]

::

(( ooc: this is a mingle! toplevel, tag each other, thread out whatever you'd like. eventually, everybody who needs it will receive a cure potion one way or another, and the day will be saved! ))

Comments

2

[titanscience]

[Hange stands in the doorway of the kitchen, leaning against it with arms folded as they look Levi over with a scrutinizing glare, silently continuing it until Levi happens to look up and notice them.]

Jean said you're in a pissy mood. Fighting with the roomba now? What's wrong with it?

[No need to beat around the bush, right?]

[wingbound]

...

[ Uh oh. ]

[ What else has Jean said? Is this some kind of a tactic where they'll make him say more than they actually know due to thinking they do? He's seen it firsthand. ]

[ Honestly, it's not often that he's being scrutinized, so it's a little unnerving, but he does his best to weather it, and continues petting the cat after a small pause. It's oddly therapeutic. He has half a mind to put it on his injured knee when it starts purring. ]

[ Well they want him to share the problem, so he will do exactly that. ]

...It's avoiding the living room.

[ You know, the main room it's supposed to clean? The one that's being dirtied at an exponential rate with all those people there? That room. ]

[titanscience]

[wow it's almost like you've been on the receiving end of this tactic before, Levi/]

There's a lot of people walking around and furniture has been moved to accommodate them. It likely interfered with it's pathing too many times so now it's lost it's sense of direction.

[That's the most likely answer in Hange's eyes, because it should still be attempting to clean the living room unless it has become so disorientated by bumping into things that shouldn't be there, that it no longer knows where the living room is. Poor little robot pancake.]

We can try to reset it later.

[That should be the end of the conversation, except Hange isn't quite done staring yet. Jean has mentioned the strange conversation he overheard between Eren and Levi, and his concerns that something was not quite right, but rather than throw that boy under the bus again Hange decides to be more upfront with it.]

Hey, Levi. If you weren't feeling well, you'd tell me, right?

[wingbound]

[ almost... ]

Ah.

[ He accepts the explanation, he doesn't understand it completely but he has a fairly good idea -- too many people and moving things, the pancake must have gotten confused. Still, he's not sure why it's not there bumping into things if it's as simple as that. ]

[ It looks like they're not done, though. He stares back, and keeps scratching the cat's fur. ]

I feel fine. [ It's not technically a lie. It's a little uncomfortable, but compared to their... comrades and enemies lining the couch, it's nothing. He's honestly not sure at this point if it's really the disease or just incoming fall chill settling into his poorly insulated bones. Maybe he's reaching that age... ] Gabi keeled over on a mission. Worry about her.

[ He didn't... technically answer the question. Oops. ]

[titanscience]

I know, I'm going to check on her again in a moment as well as the others. I just wanted to be sure..

[But Levi seems content enough, sitting there and petting his cat. Hange should be content in return, so they turn away as if to leave and head back to the living room area. And yet..]

[They're turning back soon enough, calmly walking across the kitchen until they're hovering on the boundaries of Levi's (and the cat's) personal space, pressing the back of a hand against his forehead.]

[And Hange knows it might piss him off so they begin to pre-emptively explain:]

It's not that I don't believe you, but we might not notice that we're getting sick until it progresses to the point where the body is being affected.

[At least this way, they can check again later when everyone else is sorted, or before they turn in for the evening, just to check that body temperatures haven't dropped by comparison.]

...You're cool, but you always run cooler than me anyway. [A side effect of their opposite power sets, perhaps? Hange tends to run on the warmer side.]

[wingbound]

[ Levi tries to lean away from the hand as if he were a cat himself, but confined by the chair and the void cat, all it does is delay the inevitable for maybe two seconds. ]

[ He probably feels cooler to the touch than usual, though maybe not significantly enough to immediately raise warning flags. Maybe he's feeling cold, he's always gotten cold easily, or maybe he's under the weather and his skin is clammier than usual. ]

...Told you. [ It's been this way since before they ever got said powers, but he hopes this'll be enough to convince them for now. ]

[titanscience]

[After a few more seconds the hand retreats, Hange seemingly satisfied with the observations. Levi doesn't seem to be significantly cooler than he normally would be anyway.]

Alright. In that case, let's make sure Gabi is treated, and maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea for her to hold on to a second one in case it doesn't work well enough. And then we'll make sure the others take one as well, and once that's over I'll make some for us to keep hold of?

[Got to make sure all the adoptive kids go home happy first!]

But if anything changes and you feel sick, you'd better tell me, or else! [It's out of worry, okay?]

And don't worry, before you say it, I'll let you know if I think I'm getting sick too!

[wingbound]

Yeah. [ Honestly with how bad she's gotten Levi wouldn't be surprised if she needs multiple doses, even if the research center hadn't said anything about that. ] Sounds good.

[ He shifts a little uncomfortably -- for him, that's probably comparable to squirming -- and looks away for a moment. ]

Fine. If I start feeling shitty I'll tell you.

[ His treshold of "shitty" is pretty damn high though. :) ]

And you'd better.

[ Because obviously Hange getting sick is a lot more important. ]

[titanscience]

Hah! Don't worry, if I start to feel shitty I'll make sure all of you hear about it!

[The complaints will be endless, unless it suddenly hits with such a force that Hange gets slammed by the side effects, but the progression of the illness does not seem to be that swift.]

[Satisfied for now, Hange turns to leave the kitchen area for now- there is a living room of people to check on after all, and Levi says he is doing fine for the time being.]

Let me know if you need anything, right Levi?

[wingbound]

Good.

[ He'll listen to all of their complaints! Complaining means they're not dead! ]

...yeah. You, too.

[ He's probably going to deteriorate further by the time they're handing out the potions. But if he just manages to tell them that hey, actually, he's starting to feel off before they actually test his forehead again, it should be fine. Right? ]

[ He doesn't intend to just keep quiet, he's not stupid and he's not going to let himself die to be stubborn, but it's really manageable for now, and he wants to make sure Gabi and Eren and Historia are safe before worrying about himself. ]

[titanscience]

[And so Hange disappears for a while, retuning some time later with another batch of potions before mingling with the visitors, and it's only after the conversation with Eren that they track him down once again.

Nothing's probably changed, right? But Eren seemed to be showing some concern, a flicker of actual real human emotions that didn't need to be forced out of him (too much) so it's only right that Hange properly follows up on it, right?]

How are you feeling? Any different than earlier?

[Yes the wording is specific, instead of simply asking if he felt fine. You can thank Eren for that!]

[wingbound]

[ The wording is indeed specific, and he immediately has the sense that somebody must have put Hange on his trail again. ]

[ Probably Jean, that little snitch. ]

[ He opens his mouth to say "fine", but hesitates. If Hange is zeroing in on him like this, they probably already suspect something, and might even touch him again. ]

[ And more importantly, he doesn't want to lie to them -- or maybe can't afford to be caught lying to them, but he'd rather not do it in the first place. Not after all their little pacts and promises. He takes those seriously. ]

...a bit worse, actually.

[ More like it's getting real damn difficult to hide his discomfort at this point, but it's not like anybody's keeping count! ]

But I don't know if it's anything yet.

[ SURELY JUST A COINCIDENCE WITH EVERYBODY AROUND THEM SUCCUMBING TO THE MAGICAL ILLNESS, RIGHT? ]

[titanscience]

[A bit worse? Hange frowns- that's not good. They cross the room in silence, once again reaching out to place the back of a hand on Levi's forehead. It definitely feels cooler than it did before...]

...You're getting sick. It's definitely worse than last time I was here.

[The look of concern does not fade as Hange takes a seat and scoots closer to him before once again checking the temperature of his head, his hands, and generally giving him a once-over while talking.]

Do you feel cold? Tired? Does it hurt to move? Well- more than usual? [Hange remembers that aching sensation felt during their metal titan trials. That's probably still a thing, right?]

...You should drink a potion.

[wingbound]

[ In a way, it's a bit of a relief to have it in the open, even if he's not particularly happy about that worried look on Hange's face. This is exactly what he's been trying to avoid! ]

It doesn't hurt.

[ Much. He's definitely feeling cold and tired, though, but then, the weather had been kind of cold and depressive this week. ]

We already agreed that everyone will, us included.

[ So really! No need to expedite it specifically for him! ]

[titanscience]

[Hange looks him over for a little bit longer, but it's hard to discern anything particular. There is an apartment full of people here, so naturally Levi was going to look uncomfortable anyway because there are a bunch of folks messing up the place.]

We did say that, but we also agreed that the priority would be those showing actual symptoms.

[So he should expect what comes next.]

So take one of the potions. Right now. Else we're fixing it the other way. [What other way?]

[wingbound]

[ What other way??? ]

...Did Gabi get her second one yet?

[ Haha, oops, he's not prioritizing himself. ]

[titanscience]

Not yet. Jean is helping me prepare the next batch, and I'll give her one then.

[Hange gives it five seconds, to see if he gets up to grab one...]

Levi. Take a potion. Unless you want this instead?

[Hange stares him down, unblinking, slowly opening their arms out wide. That's right mister, you have the choice of standing up and chugging a potion just like Eren had to, or you have to hug it out. There is no way Hange is going to sit here and allow him to get any worse, so choose wisely...]

[wingbound]

...She's still worse than me.

[ Levi stares back for a few moments, uncertain about exactly what kind of a threat Hange is making. The arms pretty much explain it, though, and he squirms uncomfortably in his seat. What a terrible choice, truly-- ]

[titanscience]

And she already took one, so she's improving. Eren drank one too.

[if EREN can do as he is told.... all that's left... is you!!]

Don't you want to get better? If you don't stand up and grab one right now, I'm going to hug you and I'm going to be annoying about it.

[once again... your choice...]

[wingbound]

[ A choice with multiple regrets... ]

[ His eyes narrow suspiciously as he inches toward the edge of the seat. ]

How annoying?

[ They're not breaking out the noogies, are they? ]

[titanscience]

Aren't you going to find all hugs annoying? Plus, it's me.

[But if that's the way you want to do it.... Gabi can get the next potion after all.]

[wingbound]

[ THEY'VE GOT A POINT. ]

[ But also if they had said that part about Gabi aloud, Levi would have totally decided to suffer through it. They didn't, unfortunately, and so he sighs in defeat. ]

...Fine. Give me one.

[ HE MEANS A POTION!! Though that could probably be misunderstood! But he's also holding out one hand so hopefully that's clarification enough. ]

[titanscience]

Hah! If that's your wish...

[Hange is assuming it's the hug!! Standing up and moving towards him, arms open wide.....]

[wingbound]

[ Stop -- hold -- abort -- just because he accepted and even returned (!!) one (1) hug in an emotionally dire situation this summer does not mean they can just do it whenever they please and expect him to go along with it!! ]

[ He leans away in the chair, holding up his good leg in a way that will have his boot planting right in the middle of Hange's torso if they keep inching closer. ]

Hold your horses, four-eyes, I'm talking about the medicine.

[titanscience]

[The boot does indeed end up jabbing right into Hange's torso, causing them to abruptly half in place. Talk about rude???]

[Oh. He was talking about the potion. And here was Hange, thinking that maybe he was beginning to like their hugs...]

...Hah! I know that! Just kidding~!

[You aren't fooling anyone Hange!!]

At least you've come to your senses, now. If you kept rejecting it, I was going to fill the bathtub with potion and drown you in it.

[It would be sooo much effort and incredibly wasteful. But it's also exactly the kind of eccentric scenario that Hange would pull off in order to make sure Levi was properly taken care of. Forcing potion down his throat is probably up there in difficulty besides forcing a cat to swallow pills, let's be real.]