WHO: Gwen and Isobel WHAT: Healing trials WHERE: Bathos 203 WHEN: Backdated to Sunday evening WARNINGS: None! Unless you have a problem with Gwen giggling. I know I do.
One floor. It was just one floor that separated her and Isobel and yet it felt like the longest elevator ride of her life. She didn’t want to get her hopes too high but if this was it, if this could really fix things, then she’d get Thomas down here as soon as possible. She had done her research on the younger woman and everything was checking out. Coupled with her seemingly genuine desire to help people made Isobel a perfect person for this. Approaching her as civilians and, if Roger had his way, putting him in a disguise should go some way in easing Thomas’ worries.
There was a lot of ifs involved and Gwen shook her head to clear her thoughts, not wanting to get ahead of herself. First things first. She had to see this power for herself and not just try and observe from hospital security cameras. She lifted her hand and rapped firmly on Isobel’s door, pulling back and pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. She would miss them but it would be nice to go without.
Isobel had only gotten home thirty minutes before the knock on the door, and she was still riding on the adrenaline rush from the jump. It had been, in a single word, amazing, and if she had the money, she’d do it every single weekend. So when she answered the door, she was bright with life, her cheeks flushed and blond curls a mess about her face, but the confidence and happiness exuding from her was almost blinding.
“G. Dailey?” she asked with a grin, though it was hardly a question that needed answering. From their conversation, she knew that G. Dailey was wheelchair bound, and since she hadn’t seen too many people wandering around Bathos in wheelchairs, it was quite likely that this was the lady she had spoken with on the forums. “Come in, come in!” Isobel said, gesturing her in without waiting for an answer. It was clear she had been thinking, as furniture was neatly arranged to leave room for Gwen’s wheelchair, making sure it would be easy to navigate an apartment that wasn’t necessarily set up for it. “Sorry, I just got home not that long ago, and I’m still kind of fluttering on everything that happened and...”
Stopping abruptly in the middle of her living room, Isobel turned to face her, cheeks flushed. “Isobel. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Gwen,” she corrected, for if there was ever a situation to be on a first name basis on, it was letting someone mess with your body. “And it’s a pleasure to meet you too.” It was very nice of her to fret over the furniture but Gwen had some practice moving her wheelchair through tightly packed places before. She managed to get through just fine and waved off the apologies with her hand.
“It’s okay, I should have given you more time to get settled. I guess I was a little eager.” She paused to look around the apartment curiously. “How should we do this?” If she sounded nervous, it wasn’t completely faked. Anxious, might have been a better term, or maybe even eager, but there was a touch of nervousness as well. This was as new to Gwen as it was to Isobel.
“Gwen, then.” Isobel beamed at the sound of Gwen being just as eager as she was, bouncing on the toes of her feet before rushing off towards the living room and moving some of the pillows and things aside, then pausing, glancing back towards her. “Uhm. We can sit? And then... well. I just need to touch your-” She tilted her head to the side, chewing on the corner of her lip.
“You said your back. And your eyes. Both? Neither? Something else?” Isobel sat down hard on the couch, hands in her lap, looking towards Gwen expectantly. “This part always feels so awkward. I could so not be a doctor. Ever. My bedside manner would scare every single person ever.”
“You’re doing fine. I don’t think there’s ever been a precedent so there’s no protocol to break. And lets stick with the eyes. I figure we could go small first?” Gwen tossed her a tight smile, the nervousness growing with every laugh and every second. She was giving as much trust as she could muster to Isobel but that didn’t change the fact that finally being here, finally about to go through with this, was making her incredibly nervous. This could be the answer to all their problems. It could also crush most of their hope. It could make matters completely worse. There was only one way to find out and that unnerved her but she took a deep breath and gave Isobel a nod. She always put the Bat on the list of people she’d take a bullet for or give a kidney to. Subjecting herself to a possibly dangerous experiment involving an untested and perhaps unpredictable ability was sort of along the same lines, right?
“We’ll give it a shot, hang tight for a few days to see if there are any side effects, and then toss my glasses away and go from there?” Since they weren’t going for her back, not today anyway, she merely moved her wheelchair closer, stopping a comfortable distance from the couch. She pulled off her glasses, rubbing the bridge of her nose out of habit, and settled them into her lap. The blonde woman ahead of her was now a blur of soft colors and Gwen couldn’t help her laugh. “I said small but I actually forgot how bad my eyesight is.”
Isobel gave a nod of her head to show that she understood, then laughed quietly, realising that with Gwen’s comment, she probably couldn’t see that nod. “You look good with the glasses, though, so even if this doesn’t work...” She trailed off and scooted forward so she could be closer to Gwen, feeling a bit nervous herself as to how to respond.
Biting her lip for a moment, Isobel let out a breath, trying to relax. “I... think you should probably close your eyes. I’ll touch your face and then... just kind of go from there. I think you’ll be able to tell if it works and no one else that I’ve worked with has had what I’ve done like... reverse itself or anything.” Smiling, even though she was sure it was barely seen, she reached up and touched Gwen’s cheek lightly.
“I won’t hurt you. Promise.” Was it a promise she could keep? She hoped so.
Gwen gave her a slight, shrug, not quite agreeing with the assessment that a reversal, or worse, was out of the question. She wouldn’t go as far as call herself pessimistic, not today, but she was certainly feeling cautious. “Well, I’ve had glasses for a while so no idea if that has any bearing.” Another unfortunate reminder as to how much they were winging it. But she hadn’t forgotten her purpose, and Isobel’s promise, even if it wasn’t something anyone could promise, did garner a smile.
So Gwen nodded softly, and then closed her eyes, trying not to tense in preparation for the worst.
“You’re flying as blind as I am on this,” Isobel said, then she paused, head tilted to the side. “Pardon the pun. Completely unintentional, honestly.” Her shoulders sank down as she watched Gwen close her eyes, and Isobel said a quiet little prayer to herself that this would turn out all right before she grew completely silent. Both hands were resting lightly on Gwen’s face, fingers right near her temples, though as the moments wore on, she shifted, fingers moving towards her brow, settling there.
It was still an unfamiliar process, but every time she did it, it seemed to get easier and easier. Sinking down into that part of herself where that spark of energy lay, her breathing slowed, the outside world blocked out. Slowly, surely, Isobel coaxed the energy out, pulling it from within and towards her fingertips to touch Gwen. It manifested itself as a deep warmth, spreading through tissue and muscle, seeking out the wrongs to make them right again.
As the seconds turned to minutes, Isobel continued to work, though a faint tremble had started in her arms by the time she pulled back, some fifteen minutes later. The colour had drained from her face, leaving her pale, but she smiled, fingers coming to rest lightly on Gwen’s shoulders.
“Open your eyes?” she asked softly, nervousness and fear lingering in her voice, worried that it hadn’t worked, worried that it had. This was such a land of unknown, that even success, while blissful, came with its own measure of fear.
Gwen couldn’t help but laugh at the pun, even if it was short-lived. Nervousness wasn’t foreign to her, too many months listening to people risk their lives certainly made anxiety a constant state in her life. But at least here she didn’t have to bear the burden of optimistic determination, nor did she have to be the mature and calm voice of reason. She could laugh as nervously as she wanted. It was freeing.
Then she felt it. What it was, how to describe it, she wasn’t exactly sure. Her brow furrowed under Isobel’s fingertips for a moment before being forcibly relaxed, lest she disrupt the process. Her eyes were closed but she thought she saw something, a hint of a flash there in the dark but that must’ve been nothing, simply her eyes playing tricks.
When she was told to open her eyes, Gwen did, one blink to focus her attention on Isobel, and then another because she could scarcely believe it. Her hands had been neatly folded in her lap but one came up to her face, fingertips moving close enough to touch her lashes, as if needing to make sure she somehow didn’t slip on her glasses at the last minute.
“Oh my god.” The words just slipped out but they completely conveyed her thoughts. Her sight was perfect, perhaps even a little better than what she was used to. She could feel her lips sliding into a wide smile and she couldn’t even stop the beginnings of an ecstatic giggle. “Oh my god!” She was finding it hard to come up with something a bit more coherent to say than that.
The exclamation was enough to tell Isobel that she had succeeded, that it had actually worked. A wave of warmth washed over her, and her smile grew bit by bit, tired as it was. “You... have no idea how happy I am to see how happy you are right now,” she said, unable to help a laugh of her own as she sat back against her couch. She was amazed at herself, at what she had done, at the joy that was clear on Gwen’s face. If she could bring this much happiness to people, then who was anyone to judge what she did?
Biting her lip, Isobel spoke again, a little uncertain in her words. “So, it’s good? Your sight, I mean? Like... no glasses-good?”
“Definitely no-glasses good,” she said with a laugh. “Maybe even a little better actually.” Everything seemed sharper, clearer, though she wasn’t sure if that was the actual case or she was just imagining things. Her smile faded slightly, trying to calm herself down a bit and turn a serious eye to the other woman. “How do you feel?” There was a hint of weariness in her face, that much Gwen could tell, but she didn’t know what was being hidden behind that smile of Isobel’s.
“Good. Good,” Isobel said, and she was honestly happy, almost ecstatic if her tired state could express that much. When the attention turned towards her, she blinked in surprise, sitting straighter up and waving a hand towards her to brush the question off. “I’m fine. I think I’m going to grab something to drink. Do you want something? It just feels awkward if you go so quickly after all of this.” Hopping to her feet, she displayed the tiniest amount of weariness, though she didn’t stick around long enough to let that show to Gwen. Weakness at this point would just prove Eli’s worries right, and that was the last thing she needed then.
“I’ve got... orange juice. Some cola. Iced tea... Any of that sound good to you?” she asked as she made her way to the kitchen, stumbling the last step and catching herself with one hand on the counter, stilling where she was.
Gwen took in the signs, the bit of weariness that lingered even as Isobel stood up, and filed it away for review later. All things considered, she didn’t look very bad but it was something to remember and weigh against the benefits. She was thankful for the promise of refreshments, if only for a distraction in case she was found to be too obvious in her observations. “Iced tea, please?” Her doctor did tell her to start eating healthier. “And thank you. Thank you for... for this.” Her hand gestured feebly to her own face. “I don’t even know how to repay you for this.”
“If I wanted payment, I’d set up a store, so really...” She trailed off, regaining her balance as she went to the fridge, working steadily as she got them each a drink, iced tea for Gwen and orange juice for herself. By the time she had a sip or two and had made it back to the couch, she was looking much better than she had moments earlier. Offering the glass out to Gwen, Isobel took her seat once more, finishing half the glass of juice before speaking again. “Just knowing that I can help people... I’m not in it for myself, you know? It’s just... if you have a way to help people, I think you should do it without being selfish or greedy.” Her shoulders shrugged up a little and she leaned back against the couch, the colour returning to her face. “So your thanks? Are more than enough for me.” Her smile was honest and open, pleased as punch that it had worked.
Gwen offered her a soft thank you as she took the drink and took a sip. The thirst, the way all the color and health seemed to come back to Isobel’s cheeks, didn't go unnoticed and it did ease her concern. Yes, the strain upon the healer didn’t seem to be as bad as it could’ve been. That was a good thing. So was Isobel’s genuine willingness to help. Gwen saw a lot of that among the masks but it was nice to see it in someone else too. “I know exactly what you mean,” she assured the other woman before taking another long sip of her iced tea. “Would you mind if I told someone else? About you? He’s got some eye troubles as well.”
The rest of her juice was finished off moments later before she answered Gwen’s question, giving a shake of her head to indicate that no, she was quite fine with that. “If he’s willing, I’m more than happy to offer my assistance.” It felt good to be useful, and while her thoughts might have lacked some of the maturity needed to think this through properly, she didn’t think of the consequences or the bad sides of stepping forward like this.
“Just give me a poke whenever you’d like. I don’t work in the evenings this week, so I’m free then.”
Gwen nodded and took another long sip of her drink. “Thank you. I need to talk to him about it first, but I will.” She’d give it a few days still, test everything out and make sure everything was fine. Then she’d discuss her findings with Thomas. “Hopefully you’ll be hearing from him sooner or later.” Hopefully.