i_seekgod Long Hours (Babs, Max)
The smoke had done him good. Calmed his nerves, and at the same time, provided the cool night air and fresh breaths that it could provide. Okay, so smoking hadn't been exactly breathing clean air, but it was out there. That counted. The violent feelings had seeped out of him, faltered. He was able to let them go. Amazing what a little bit of cancer could do for a guy.
And he took a bit of time, going back up. Looking at the place. The fancy things. He'd had things like this once. Well. They were never really his, but he'd lived in a house like this. Angelville. It made him shudder just to think about it.
Stinking of smoke, he finally returned to Max's room. From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 18:25:15M
Despite having told Jesse she would go down stairs if the situation changed, Babs couldn't bring herself to actually leave Max's side when things did change.
Jesse hadn't been gone long when Max finally did slip off into sleep. One that Babs couldn't wake her from. She couldn't blame the girl for wanting to fall asleep, but it just could not happen and Babs started trying to wake her up immediately, talking to her and shaking as hard as she could without providing any further injury.
When Max's breathing evened and slowed Babs wasn't sure whether to panic or relax. Either she was in a deep sleep brought on by exhaustion, or her brain was shutting down all unnecessary functions and slipping into a comatose state, which would be bad no matter how light it was. She wasn't responding to any of her prodding, leaving Babs wanting to know exactly what was going on in that head of hers.
Comas didn't necessarily lead to death, but it wasn't a scenario Babs wanted to deal with. And therefore, Max was going to wake up.
It was nice to have some sort of determination in times like this. Babs mustered her own up as she continued trying to wake the girl. She barely noticed when Jesse walked in, though the smell of smoke wafted toward her. She didn't turn, she was too busy pulling out the smelling salts and listening to Max breath. It had sped up again, giving Babs a bit of hope.
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 18:35:54
At first he didn't notice anything wrong, but then he noticed that Babs was over Max, and Max wasn't responding. He immediately moved to the bedside and stood over them both.
"Fuck. What happened?" Jesse moved to where he could get to Max easier, and it meant crawling onto the bed and stradling her legs. "MAX!" He yelled at her, "Max! Fucking open your eyes!" He shook her and picked up her hand to squeeze it. There was nothing in return from her. "Oh, God, baby, don't do this. Please don't do this, you gotta wake up, Max, you gotta open your eyes for me."
Babs wasn't even there for him anymore. All his attention was on Max. That pink hair. Those wonderful eyes that he couldn't see.
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 18:55:03
"She's going to wake up," Babs said quietly. Her voice was determined, even if she wasn't sure in her mind.
The smelling salts did little except to prove that Max was still someone alert. Her face moved slightly, but there was still no recognition of Babs or Jesse. Babs worried when she realised Max wasn't even responding to Jesse.
She reached over, gently resting a hand on Max's face and lifting an eyelid. The pupils were still dilated and she still didn't give much of a reaction. There was a flinch in her cheek, but Babs didn't know what to make of it, whether to take it as a good or bad sign.
"Her breathing's changing, that's positive at least. She... she could just be sleeping. She slipped out just a few minutes after you left." She couldn't just hope Max was sleeping and give up though; Babs moved back over to her supplies, and started pulling things out.
From: [info]i_amjustme Date: 02/07/2006 19:03:15
A shadow in the corner of the room pulled back slightly.
Death stood, as she'd been standing the entire time, looking over Max. The damage had to be assessed - things were still a bit uncertain here.
She took a step closer, reaching out a hand to feel for the pulse of life, and her fingers paused, a few inches over the girl's prone form. No. Not yet. It was still strong.
She recognized the pink hair then. Turned her head, and saw familiar faces. Death smiled, and as she stepped back, to the side, she faded back out of the visible spectrum.
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 19:06:54
Jesse's heart stopped.
Stopped.
He was stone still hovering over Max. Unable to breathe. Unable to think.
Didi.
Death
Everything in the world was slowed to nothing. His eyes stayed on her hand, on her fingers, hovered over Max's body, even when they were gone, he was still staring at that spot.
Jesse was frozen.
"Shit."
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 19:20:26
Babs saw it too, looking up through a curtain of hair she saw the shadow shimmer into something barely visible. She didn't recognise Didi immediately, but when she did the syringe and vial she was holding dropped from her hands.
She only remained for a moment, but it was enough for Babs to become more scared for Max's well being than she had been all night. What was she doing here?
She couldn't even speak until Didi's ghost-like figure was gone. Absolutely gone.
"Oh, God. Jesse," Babs whispered once Death had left the room. She gulped, her hand was only just lowering from her mouth. "Jesse. Max needs... damnit, you know who that was. Pulse... does she have a pulse? Breathing, tell me she's breathing."
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 19:28:24
He was shaking, as he reached out to feel for Max's pulse. He swallowed. It took him a moment to hold his hand still enough to locate the vein.
"T-thready." He managed.
Jesse had to lean his face down and put his cheek near her mouth in order to feel her breath. It was barely there.
"Barely. Weak. Slow."
Jesse sat up again. "MAX!" This wasn't happening. There was no way this was fucking happening. "MAX!"
No. He wouldn't accept this. It wasn't going to go like this.
"MAX!" He tried shaking her again. Tried pinching her. Got nothing.
"Fuck it." Jesse moved Max's face so that it directed right at him. "Max. Fucking wake up!"
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 19:41:26
It worked. How? Babs didn't know, but thanked God it had. Max woke up rather abrubtly in a jerking sort of motion. The first thing she did was grab at Jesse's arm. But the burst of energy faded quickly and she slipped back down to the pillows.
But her eyes were still open. "Guys, 'm awake. 'm not sleeping, don't worry." Babs almost wanted to laugh after Max's slurred sentence. Don't worry. Right.
Babs set down the syringe again, heaving out a sigh of relief. Didi hadn't taken her off, though if it was even remotely possible, Babs might have wanted to try and maul her for scaring them like that.
"How did you get her up?" It was little more than a miracle in Babs' mind. The thought that Jesse had possibly just ordered it to happen hadn't crossed her thoughts.
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 19:44:48
"Uh." Jesse scratched his head. "Well. Y'see..."
For a second he just looked at Babs, and had no idea what to say. Jesse readjusted himself so his back was against the wall, and his legs covered Max's.
"I'm not quite sure how to put it. How to explain it. It's complicated."
And that was putting it lightly.
He took Max's hand and squeezed it, glad when she squeezed back. His heart was still pounding.
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 19:49:29
Huh. So he had done something.
She should have known better. Nothing happened without a reason or a cause. "Try me. We've got time, and you may have just saved her life."
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 19:50:39
That was very true. The time part.
"It's called The Word of God."
No reason to beat around the bush, right?
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 19:55:29
A preacher who possessed something called The Word of God. At least it made sense in theory.
"Care to elaborate?" Babs asked curiously. "I'm guessing it has something to do with having people do exactly what you say. Even if they're almost comatose."
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 19:59:02
"Anything." He nodded. "Uh. Pretty much just that. Those who hear it, who it's directed at, they can't do anything but obey. I'm not sure if it's a gift or a curse. But it's there."
Jesse really really didn't want to get into Genesis. He really wanted to avoid that.
"Compelled, some have said. Even those who just hear it happen, that I don't direct it at, they usually get chills or somesuch."
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 20:07:53
"Right now, it's a gift." Babs nodded towards Max.
She hadn't noticed chills or anything of the sort, but considering she'd been getting over the shock of seeing Didi, it wasn't surprising.
"Interesting. Your bravado makes sense, with this on your side. You'd have more than a fighting chance." Did Babs think pitting him against the Joker would be a good idea? No, she still didn't. She didn't really think it would be a good idea for anyone. But she understood now that the outcome would most likely not be as dire as she'd believed.
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 20:11:41
Jesse smirked. "My bravado has nothing to do with this, Babs. I'm just a cocky asshole by nature. I'd have the same words to say if this wasn't present."
He may have blushed a little.
"But it does help, yes. I just try not to use it all the time. It'd be easy to abuse it. It'd be easy to use it for my own gains. I only use it when I've really gotta. If I think it'd be really helpful, if there's no other way to do things, if I can save a life or many."
Jesse shrugged.
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 20:20:31
Babs nodded approvingly, believing him yet again. "That's the most we can ask. I doubt Max minds you've used it on her. She knows about it, I assume?"
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 20:24:27
"She does. I've told her all about it." He squeezed her hand again. "I hope she's not mad. I couldn't think of anything else to do. At least I didn't make her stand on her head, right?"
It was supposed to be a joke, but it didn't really sound like one by the time he'd gotten the whole thing out. He was too tired, emotionally, to be really able in the joking department.
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 20:33:56
"Right, there is that. It would be stupid for Max to be mad, and we've already established that she's not that." Babs gave a small smile, watching Jesse squeeze Max's hand. She responded in kind.
"Is it wrong that I almost want to hurt Didi for scaring us like that?" Babs asked, shaking her head. "Max must have been close."
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 20:38:26
"No, I don't think it's wrong. I think she gave me a minor heart attack. But to be honest? I don't think that Didi did it because she wanted to scare us. She didn't even recognize us right off. Didn't you see that look? She was doing her job. I hate that she was doing her job, but. I just can't bring myself to be mad at her."
Jesse rested his head against the wall. "Fuck. What a day."
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/07/2006 20:47:53
Babs' view towards Didi's job wasn't as generous as Jesse's seemed to be. But then, Didi knew that. Maybe she hadn't been intentionaly trying to scare them, but that was certainly the end result.
"Tomorrow won't be much better," she said softly. "Tomorrow's x-rays, most likely some sort of scans to see the damage to her head, pain, rehashing... sorry." She rubbed the bridge of her nose and sighed.
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/07/2006 20:51:55
"No, Babs." Jesse smiled. "Tomorrow will be better. Max will be out of immediate danger and on her way to recovery. She'll survive x-rays, they won't hurt her none. She'll get through every test you throw at her. Tests don't do more damage."
Carefully, he slid off of the bed, careful to not jostle Max too much.
"You've seen some shit in your life, Babs, I can see that. Not just because of..." He nodded to her chair. "I can see it in your eyes. But really, you've got to look at the good more than the bad. The bad drags you down and holds you there. The good may be fleeting, and it might be small, but it's there. A small pink ray of sunshine in an otherwise bleak world."
There were those pills again, and he hung his head. "Goddamned birth control."
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/08/2006 04:17:58
"The bad's easier to see, there's more to learn from." That was her job after all, and had been for years. She picked through all the bad, connected the pieces and then sent it off to the people who fixed it. She spent her days looking for it when she sat watching the monitors. "Sure the good's there, but it's not as easy to find. Makes it hard to spot that sunshine."
She didn't look for the good, though that's what she strived for. It just wasn't her job to pick it out, and rarely did she see it in Gotham.
Jesse was probably right, she was too focused on the bleak outlooks. But that was how she helped. "Take your own advice," she said, smiling when he cursed. "Don't focus on it. Ask her about it when she's feeling better." Babs knew she would be.
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/08/2006 07:44:14
"You can learn from the bad without wallowing in it."
He looked at Babs. "Everything I've been through in my life, if I let the bad get to me like that," He shook his head. "I'd have been dead before I was ten. I'm not an optimist by no means. I'm more like... like a realist. Life is shit. It sends a lot of horrible things on people who don't deserve it. But really, if it's all you can focus on, it's going to destroy you. Of course the bad's easier to see. It's easier to remember. And when you're knee deep in the shit, it's certainly easy to focus on nothing else."
Jesse took his spot on the floor by the bed.
"You've gotta look for that sunshine. Life aint worth livin without it."
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/08/2006 10:06:31
Focusing on all the crime and desperation in Gotham and Bludhaven helped though. It meant she didn't focus on herself, which had the potential to be equally as bad. Her father had said that even if she didn't her job to focus on, she wouldn't have allowed herself to fall into self pity after the shooting. Her personality wouldn't allow it, he insisted. But Babs wasn't so sure, because she knew Jesse was right. She had a tendancy to wallow, assume and plan for the worst, even if it wasn't on purpose.
She didn't say any of that, prefering to keep it to herself for now. The only thing she could do then was nod in partial agreement before she did start thinking and over analysing too much. She wasn't 'working' right now.
"Sunshine, alright," Babs said finally. She smiled, gestured to the bed. "Death passed Max over once. And, I suppose you're right about tomorrow. You're near right about me too, I don't look for it enough."
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/08/2006 10:13:47
"I think that if Max were in real danger, Didi would have let us know. I mean, she did in a way, just being here, but I don't think she'd have smiled like that if she thought she were coming back tonight."
He was already playing with the cigarettes again, and then remembered the flask. Jesse grinned at Babs.
"Got a taste for JD?" So parts of him were left wanting when it came to certain things. He smoked, he drank, and he wasn't sorry about either. Vices. Every man's got em.
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/08/2006 10:23:12
"Can't say I do," she said with a smirk. Her alcohol pallet was much more curbed towards wine and champagne, if only because that's what she'd ended up drinking at the various dinner parties and balls she'd been subjected to during her teen years when her father made commissioner.
Even that was rare though, as her own self disciplines rarely allowed her to drink. Oracle wasn't supposed to lack focus.
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/08/2006 10:28:58
"Then I most certainly don't have a flask of it in my jacket." Jesse nodded sagely.
This not smoking at any time thing was hard to get used to. Everywhere he'd always been, smoking had been allowed. Or tolerated. Being a chain smoker, he didn't like to have to get up every time he had an urge. It would be every two minutes. Jesse looked longingly at his cigarettes.
"If you've got something else you need to be doin, Babs, I can stay with her. If you wanna go rest or whatever."
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/08/2006 10:44:29
Rest, no, not exactly, but Babs gave Jesse a smile when he offered. "Thanks. I should probably go get in touch with Bruce, and maybe tell Alfred what's happened. I feel bad, I'd told him to go rest for the evening, but he'd want to know sooner rather than later. I could take a few minutes to look at those tapes too."
One last look at Max confirmed for Babs that it would be alright to leave. No more than an hour or so maybe, but she didn't think anything would happen within the time. But, because she couldn't help it, just in case...
"Alright, if anything happens, the smelling salts are here." She pointed to the small bottle on the floor. "And if she falls asleep like she did before and for some reason you can't wake her your way, stick this needle in her arm and inject everything. It's simple, just right on the forearm. It should force her awake."
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 02/08/2006 12:32:25
"It's okay, really, Babs. You can go. I'll take care of her."
He smiled and pointed at the door. "Go, Babs. It'll be okay."
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 02/08/2006 12:39:51
Babs nodded slowly, chewing for a moment on her lip. Eventually she gave a firmer nod, and pushed herself over to Jesse. She set the smelling salts and the filled syringe by his side.
"I'll be back in about an hour. If I'm not, Alfred will be." She took a breath to reassure herself, and then smiled. "An hour."
With one more glance towards Max, she turned, and headed from the room.