InsaneJournal

WHO Luna and AGB
WHAT AGB gets cornered in his house, Luna saves him like a badass, and they finally kiss and share their feelings in triage.
WHEN At some point this evening during the darkspawn invasion.
WHERE AGB's house
RATING PG

When Bethany had first mentioned the threat of Darkspawn, Luna had offered to assist with the underground searches. It’d taken until now for that threat to really show itself, however -- and Luna still wasn’t prepared for what she’d since since the chaos had begun. She’d first helped with the rescue, trying to help herd people into safe spaces and get a tally of who was present and who still needed recovery. Leadership skills were what she offered most, and she could easily take control of her parts of this situation.

However, it did not take very long for a nagging worry in the back of her mind to become a full-fledged fear. She’d been keeping a keen eye out for Alexander, and he’d not shown. She kept assuming he’d be in the next wave, but she’d caught glimpses of others he’d have been with, and there was still no sign of him.

By the time she was able to break away to search, she’d hardened herself, mentally preparing to find him dead. Luna knew battle, contrary to what those here might’ve guessed given her beliefs on violence. She knew what happened in these situations -- those who were not able to defend themselves and did not have protectors did not survive. She’d buried too many not to understand the way these things often went, and she had a pit in her stomach.

Blades in hand, Luna had made her way to Alexander’s house, fears seemingly confirmed by the sounds of Darkspawn prowling around the home. In truth, the time between arriving and his door and very violently dispatching the group of creatures accumulated towards the back wasn’t long at all. Luna’s blend of experience and fury made for a hailstorm of activity, and there was a silence (at least in the immediate sense, though there were still the outside sounds of chaos that came through the windows).

Covered in a fair amount of blood and breathing just a little heavier from the exertion, she paused to catch her breath, looking at the door that had so fascinated the Darkspawn. Preparing herself, and not entirely sure what to expect on the other side of it, she kicked a body out of the way and pulled it open.

She was greeted by a sudden puff of smoke filling the doorway, followed by a noisy scramble and then a cry of pain.

Alexander Graham Bell had not fallen to the darkspawn, as it happened. When they tunneled through into the bottom of his house, however, he’d taken a nasty fall in his attempt to make an escape over the collapsing floor and broken his leg. At least, he was fairly certain he’d broken his leg. The swelling, horrendous pain, and unnatural angle of his shin were definitely leading him to that conclusion.

The smoke bomb was a last-ditch effort at escape, and not one he really expected to work. Those…beasts, whatever they were, were definitely not something he could fight off, even if he’d been properly on his feet. He’d no meaningful training in fighting, just a few handy devices for escape. He’d used three voltaic bombs just to stun the creatures long enough that he could get himself barricaded into his bedroom, and the longer he was in there, the more certain he was that he was going to die there.

The smoke caught her by surprise, and her immediate thought was that there must be a fire. Then she heard the cry, and her heart stopped just briefly before kickstarting again. Alexander? She coughed, squinting through the smoke as it started to spread out just a bit, and pushed through the makeshift barricade to step further into the room, searching for the signs of life that should’ve accompanied the sound she’d heard.

“Who is in here?” she asked, still searching. “Alexander?”

Alexander had never been so relieved to hear human speech in all his life. He was even more relieved to hear who it was. His pulse was still hammering and he was growing dizzy with pain, but for the first time in what felt like eternity, he considered the idea that he might not die today.

“Luna?” His voice was weaker than usual, straining through the smoke, the pain, and the not-inconsiderable amount of screaming he’d done when first introduced to a squad of tainted beast-men from underground. He looked to the door, and sure enough, that was definitely Luna - her hair made for a silhouette that was impossible to mistake for anyone else.

“Oh, thank god,” he sighed heavily, and found that as the danger and adrenaline passed, his breath was turning ragged and his leg was hurting steadily more. “It’s you. I thought for certain I was done for. I’m sor--ow. Sorry about the smoke bomb. I thought…” He shuddered, unable to even finish that sentence. It was too much to think of, on top of everything else.

Luna’s exhale at the sound of his voice was bordering on a near-sob of relief, that very definite belief that he’d died and the stoic, deadly calm that had accompanied it settling into something entirely different now that she knew he was somewhere in that room with a still beating heart.

She moved towards the sound of his voice, his form becoming a lot easier to make out as she got closer and the smoke escaped through the open door. While her silhouette had been unmistakable, she definitely didn’t look like herself, covered as she was in what looked like blood and dirt. But she was smiling at the sight of him, and she knelt down at his side, setting her blades aside. She grabbed one of his hands, her other hand moving to his face, and she felt so much relief at the fact that she could touch him.

“I thought the same,” she said, shaking her head. “I have never been so glad to be wrong.”

She looked him over, her eyes finding his injury easily and concern replacing the smile instantly. “You’re very hurt,” she said. “How is the pain?”

“...quite bad, actually,” he reluctantly admitted. “I’m no doctor, but I’m fairly certain it’s broken. They came through the bloody floor, and I was trying to get out, but there was a lot to fall over, and they were all coming at me, and--” Alexander’s train of thought hit the switch junction and quickly moved tracks. “Are they gone now? I swear I just heard them. How did you get through to here?”

“I think you’re right,” she said, frowning. “I’m no doctor either, but I’ve seen and set many broken legs in my time.” She worried it might be badly broken enough to need surgery, but she kept that to herself for the moment. She smiled back at him as he explained what happened, unable to resist being endeared by the fact that in the midst of all of this, he’d hurt himself badly by tripping. “They are,” she said, nodding. “I killed them. They took a bit of effort, but they die just like anything does.” She picked up one of her blades, just to show him, then set it back down. “More will come, though.”

Alexander was quite rightly impressed. He only knew a few people who could survive a fight like that, and they were all professional assassins. And while he was aware from conversation with Luna that her world was a dangerous place and she had sometimes had to fight to survive there, he also knew she didn’t like fighting. It was actually rather moving that she had come to his rescue swinging blades.

“Will you be all right taking my weight to get out of here?” he asked. “I can’t walk, but I ought to be able to hop if I can lean on you a bit...or a lot, really. Just until we get out of the house and find some more help. Because honestly, I don’t think I can go that far even if I’m hopping.”

It wasn’t often that Luna discussed those parts of her past that involved violence and bloodshed, but exposing this side to Alexander now had been an easy decision. She’d come to his house to find his body, and had found him alive instead. She was too relieved to be secretive, too happy to see him to hide parts of herself, and too worried about his injury to bother mincing her words.

“I’ll get you out,” she said, nodding, and then she smiled. “It’s good to know you’re still talkative even when terrified and in pain. You’re very consistent.” She looked back at his leg. “Let me see if I can put a cane together, too. That may help.” She looked around to find something to work with, ultimately rising to her feet and looking around his room a moment. “I’ll be back in half a moment,” she said, and was true to her word, disappearing and reappearing quickly with a broken off broom handle. She returned, kneeling back beside him. “Are you ready to try to get to your feet?”

Alexander winced at the thought of getting up. He was in awful pain already, cringing just at the effort of existing, and the idea of jostling his leg sort of made him want to vomit. On the other hand, he didn’t want to be in this house a moment longer, either, as the stench of darkspawn seeped further into everything.

A random flashing thought wondered if his piano had made it through the slaughter. He resolved not to think about it yet, closed his eyes, and nodded. “How...how should we do this? I’m honestly not thinking straight at the moment, despite my ever-present insistence on chatter, so I’ll gladly follow your instructions. Or will as gladly as anyone can do anything with a broken leg.”

Fortunately, taking the lead and calming even the most unsettled of people was a great skill of Luna’s. They were qualities that had made her a leader, and they were qualities she’d use now. Her voice was calm, in spite of the situation. “It’s okay,” she said. “This is the hardest part, Alexander. Once we get you on your feet, all we have to do is keep your weight shifted. The getting up is the challenge, and it’ll be over quickly.” She took his hands, squeezing them gently. “I’m going to support your broken side, and you’ll favor the other. Together, we’ll get you to your feet. I want you to try to keep your leg in the same position it’s in now as we get you up, okay? It’ll feel awkward, but I can support your weight.”

She smiled reassuringly, even though his eyes were closed. “Just nod when you’re ready and we’ll move,” she said, readjusting her hold on him so that she could help lift him when it was time to do so.

Luna really was good at this. Her voice was calm and soothing, and she had a way of sounding very confident in her optimism. Despite the incredible pain and the absolute terror he’d just experienced, listening to Luna made him believe that yes, actually, he could do this.

So he took a deep breath and a tight hold on Luna’s arm, and he nodded.

Luna was right, it turned out. It hurt like the very devil--Alexander gasped as Luna hauled him up, and he had to stop for a moment because the black at the edge of his field of vision was a sure sign that he was about to pass out--but they managed it. He was on his feet, or at least he was on one foot, leaning heavily on Luna on the other side.

“Forward, then?” he said, attempting a smile. It was really more of a grimace, but he was doing his best.

Once they were both on their feet, Luna’s focus remained on Alexander, and she supported him solidly while she waited for his dizziness to clear and his footing to get as steady as it could be. She smiled at him at his words, nodding, and bent only briefly to grab her knife and the makeshift cane. “Forward. You’re doing so well already,” she said.

It was a slow process, getting Alexander to triage while they battled both the occasional darkspawn and his significant pain and the effect it kept trying to have on his consciousness, but they made it and Luna put his well-being into the hands of the capable medical team. She went nowhere, though -- it was likely she may’ve been needed, but her priority was him and so she’d stayed at his side as his leg was examined and set and the pain medication was finally administered.

She was still at his side as the very busy medical team moved on to the next patient, just waiting for some of that pain to pass and for a more at-ease, relaxed Alexander to return to her.

Dilaudid, Alexander thought, was really quite wonderful stuff. He felt a bit sleepy, but the tibia/fibula fracture he'd sustained might as well not exist for all he felt it. It was a bit like being wrapped in a warm fuzzy blanket, brain and all. Once the drugs kicked in, he was significantly less distressed than he had been. Not having the threat of the Darkspawn upon them was also quite a relief. Within a few minutes of getting the drugs and his leg set, he looked over at Luna and actually smiled. He was going to be in for surgery the next day, but for now he was just happy to be alive and to have Luna sitting beside him.

“Thank you for staying,” he said, reaching for her hand.

Luna had been worried for him -- a great deal more than she’d let on, in fact. His leg had definitely needed some aid, and she was equally concerned about the lasting impacts his endeavor would have on him. He was safe now, though, and that was enough for her. She didn’t have quite as much experience with the impacts of the medicines in this world, as she hadn’t yet had a need to visit the hospital herself and such things didn’t really exist in her part of the world back home, but she could see his body relaxing. It was a fine sight, after what she knew he’d gone through.

She smiled at him when he looked over, taking his hand and moving closer, her other hand moving to push some hair from his eyes affectionately. “Of course,” she said, nodding. “I’m not going anywhere.” She squeezed his hand a bit. “How are you feeling?”

“Fuzzy?” he offered, not entirely sure how to express it. “But no significant pain, for the moment. And very glad you're here.”

Alexander had come to Fairharbor from Victorian England. He came with a host of rules when it came to romantic entanglements, and as a proper gentleman, he'd been following them with Luna. He hadn't held her hand too long, and though he'd been alone with her much longer than would be considered appropriate in his own time, he'd never done any more than kiss her hand. He was as careful with his feelings and hers as he was not with scientific research.

But today, he'd had a brush with death. He'd been in danger before, but from men, not from terrifying underground man-beasts with blood-curdling howls and gnashing teeth. He'd hurt himself before, but not like this. Luna had saved him from certain death, and cemented for good his opinion that she was the most impressive woman he'd ever met. And here she was, sitting at his side, and he found that there didn't seem to be much reason to keep his feelings to himself anymore, regardless of how comparatively short their acquaintance might be. He was going to tell her this time, and ask her permission to court her in earnest...just as soon as his mouth caught up with his brain again, because opiates really weren't always all they were cracked up to be.

“Fuzzy will work for now,” Luna responded with a laugh, grinning at him. There was a little burst in her chest, one she felt a lot when she was with him. This time was different, though… it was joy over the fact that he was still here. She’d been so sure she’d lost him, but here he was.

Luna had come from a place nearly opposite Alexander’s England. Her world had returned to more natural, animalistic ways. Affection and courting were vastly different and far more physical. She was accustomed to that -- to skipping all of the gentle, sweet flirting and going right to more carnal pleasures. In her world, waking up the next morning was never guaranteed, and her people were not the sort to waste time.

Alexander’s actions and this slow, romantic pace was a novelty to her, and it made her so curious, but she was enjoying it tremendously. She enjoyed him tremendously. The fact that she’d nearly been too late and he’d nearly been killed was something she never wanted to consider again. He meant too much to her.

So while the opiates were keeping him just delayed enough, her own feelings were pushing her forward. She lifted just a bit out of her chair, moving closer to him and pressing her lips to his.

The fuzzy feeling melted into something warmer as Alexander responded to the kiss. He'd thought about kissing her a thousand times, and now he was actually doing it, and the drugs had his inhibitions low enough to reach up and three his fingers into her magnificent curls. It was really just a shame that his head was swimming too much to sit up more.

When the kiss broke, Alexander was smiling faintly once again. “You know,” he quietly, “I’ve been wanting to kiss you for a very long time now.”

There was no hesitation in Luna’s kiss, and not only because of the relief she felt at him being here with her. There was also no hesitation because she did not doubt that he’d receive it well. That had been the beauty of their courtship thus far, unfamiliar territory as it was to her. She knew how Alexander felt, at least in a general sense. She knew he’d return the kiss, and she knew he’d be smiling just as she was when they separated. She stayed close to him, even as she caught her breath.

“I’ve been wanting to be kissed for a very long time now,” she said, grinning. “You are the most important thing here to me, Alexander.”

“You are the same for me,” he replied. “And if you’ll allow it, I'd very much like to continue kissing you when I’m not so wool-headed. That, and I...well, if I were at home, I'd need to ask your family’s permission to court you, which is what we call the process of convincing a woman she’d like to marry you, and I realize I'm rambling, and I mean to blame the drugs and my very bad day for that instead of my natural inclination toward being a chatterbox, but what I mean is, I’ve grown very fond of you and admire you greatly, I'd like to see you more, and I entertain some hope that it really might work out.”

Luna grinned as he spoke, then ultimately couldn’t help but laughing gently as he kept rambling, ducking her head down as her shoulder shook. When she looked back up, she leaned to kiss him again, very briefly, before pulling back. “I’m not sure which part of that was the question, but I’ll say yes to the lot of it,” she said, grinning at him.