Log; Complete

[guardianed.livejournal.com]

When; Midnight; Beginning of grab bag curses
Rating; PG-13
Characters; Gaignun Kukai Jr. [red_dragon_666] & Riza Hawkeye [guardianed]
Summary; Jr and Hawkeye are both doing their part to keep the shadow wolves away when they get hit with the Power Switch curse.
Log;

It had been a tough week, that was for sure. At first it was all he could do to even get out of bed in the morning, or to make himself eat. Sakura and Shelley were the only reasons he had returned to the Durandal. Finding Elena gone hadn't helped him any. He refused to sleep in his room after that. Not the bed he had shared with her.

For some reason, Gaignun's room was his sanctuary right now. It was the only place he felt at peace...and right now it was important to stay cheerful and calm. Organizing a party for Sakura had been the perfect way to do that. It was a nice distraction.

But even better? Was killing. The outbreak in the square had been a perfect excuse to vent. At first he had only gone because Sakura was so worried for Autor, but even after Autor had been carried off, Rubedo kept on fighting. To help people. To vent. To let his pains take a temporary vacation while his blood burned red hot and all he saw was white.

The fight had just started to die down, the mutts finally dwindling, when it hit him. Or rather...left him. It was just as he was kicking one of the shadow wolves away that everything went...black instead of white, just for a moment. And then, suddenly, there was nothing. Normally when he fought, the Red Dragon whispered to him. Nonsensical whispers that made the fighter in him excited.

But that was gone. There was no pressure, and there was no worry about cutting loose. And...he felt weaker. With a stumble, Rubedo reached up to touch his chest. ...Where was his brother's heartbeat?

"What the f--" And before he could even finish that sentence, a whole group of the wolves took that moment of weakness to tackle him and tear at him, getting a shocked yell out of him as he quickly grabbed his pistols back up to begin firing.


Hawkeye knew better than to put herself in the melée down below, but had made her way up to the roof of one of the overlooking buildings with her rifle, firing when it looked like someone was about to be surprised or overwhelmed by one of the creatures. Her shots didn't do much; they seemed to regenerate rather like the homunculus did. But a death was a death, even for a homunculus, and her lethal shots made the beasts recoil from the people they'd been attacking. Long enough, usually, for the person to make a getaway.

She pressed her finger against the trigger again, aiming with the casual ease she always did, and missed. Not completely. No. But she hadn't hit what she was aiming for, and it wasn't because she'd not taken in the creature's movement into account.

And in that half second of surprise at sudden imprecision, several other things hit her- a sense of roiling pressure in the back of her mind; bloodthirsty and ready for battle, a second heartbeat, a second pressure along her back. A sense of abilities she hadn't had moments before.

What the hell was the City playing at?

Pushing back against the pressure to release, to go all out, Hawkeye sighted down the barrel of her rifle, because a red-haired person she recognized had just been overwhelmed by the creatures. Sighting and lining up was almost unfamiliar to her- she knew she could do this. Fired at the creatures that presented the biggest targets to her, the ones that presented the least danger of hitting the person underneath. And breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that her aim wasn't that off. She would just have to take longer to line up her shots.

But ...what the hell was this pressure about?


He was relieved when the wolves began to back off, one jumping away from a gunshot that hadn't belonged to him. When it moved, from where he was sprawled on his back, he could make out a familiar figure, but it took him a moment to recognize her. "Thanks!" he shouted, though he doubted she could have heard him over the loud sounds of gunfire and screaming coming from all over the square and beyond.

Leaping back up onto his feet, Rubedo spun around to fire at another wolf that tried to jump him. At least his marksmanship hadn't gone down... But he still felt weird. Almost...empty?

Uch, and he was bleeding. The monsters had torn into his arm pretty good with their teeth. That was the least of his worries, though, because apparently his supernatural senses had gone down as well, as he didn't feel another one coming up behind him. Claws sliced through his jacket to cut across his back, making him stumble and just about fall on his face.

He caught himself in time to break into a run, though, realizing he needed to take a moment to heal before he could do any more damage. Why was he suddenly so off his game?

As he ducked behind a bench, Rubedo crouched and held his hand over his arm, muttering out a very irritated sounding, "Ether Drive!"

...Nothing.

Why wasn't he healing?! He tried again, then a third time, only to realize he was completely out of juice. "What the Hell is going?!" he yelled out, jumping up to shoot at another shadow beast as it tried to jump him. Was this some kind of curse? Had it taken all his powers?! That meant it was already after midnight, and Sakura was probably worried. But he couldn't let her see him this bloodied up or she would have a fit, to be sure.

His right arm was too injured to even fire properly, and with one working arm and his weakened state, he couldn't take a mob like this. His only option was to...run. Something his pride couldn't take.


This was starting to get seriously disconcerting. Jr had looked up at her, recognition in his eyes, and she'd had a sense of dèjá vu, looking down the sight of her rifle at someone squinting up at her, but the sense had to be shook away as she saw another of the creatures raise up to slash at his back. She knew he fought stronger than that.

She wasn't fast enough now to take it out before it got there. Frustration at her decreased sharpshooting abilities flashed through her mind, and the pressure in her mind whispered at her to let loose, she could kill things, get rid of all of them. Immediately slamming down a mental barrier, Hawkeye refocused. Jr was trying something- and it wasn't working. And the niggling thought that what he was trying- failing- to do; she could do it.

Now where had that thought come from? But it'd given her an idea of what was happening- perhaps. She needed to get either off the roof or get Jr off the ground. She didn't know how long she could stall off the beasts with slower reflexes- but she could give it a literal shot. Aiming for the nearest creatures to Jr, she fired off a couple shots in succession. Maybe he'd look up at her and could see her if she signaled him to duck into a building.


He did look behind him when he heard another wolf yelp and fall away, looking up after glancing over his shoulder. It was like she was his temporary guardian angel. He hated to depend on people, but it was a real relief.

Inside was definitely safer than outside, and since she was the one currently watching his back, Rubedo darted right for the building she was occupying. The front door was thankfully unlocked, and Rubedo was quick to slam it shut and turn the lock before sighing and slumping back to lean against the door. At least this hadn't happened when he'd still needed to be defending Autor.

Still, there were all those people out there who he was unable to protect now. Gritting his teeth, Rubedo glanced around where he'd ended up. A video rental shop? Great. Just when he totally wasn't in the mood for movies. And he doubted they had any bandages available under the damn cash register.


Well he'd gotten her hint, and dashed into the shop, and Hawkeye was quickly down the stairs, slinging the rifle over her shoulder. She hadn't really given much thought to the shop she'd used the upstairs of, it had commanded the best view of the area.

But this was still really, really weird. She was getting used to pushing back the sensation to the far reaches of her mind far more quickly than she would like. How did you even ask about this? Well, directly.

"I believe I may have something of yours, Jr." The blonde set the statement out with something of a wry smile.


Spotting Riza coming down the stairs, Rubedo quickly straightened up and pushed away from the door so he didn't look like a complete wuss. "Oh yeah? What's that?"

He clearly wasn't getting the message, but how could he? Such a thing wasn't the first thing that would come to a normal person's mind...especially when he was concerned with his injuries. He couldn't tell how bad the one on his back was, but he was pretty sure his arm was going to need bandages and a sling.

Already he was shedding his jacket and trying to tug off his outer shirt, voice muffled as he pulled it over his head. "Some of my painkillers, I'm hoping."


The wounds looked worse from close up. Hawkeye momentarily thanked her good judgement not to try hand to hand fighting with shadow wolves.

The Lieutenant didn't bat an eye at Jr.'s removal of his jacket and shirt- it was obvious he was trying to assess the damages. "I'm afraid not. But I have got the most bizarre headache I've ever had." If you could call it a headache. That wasn't quite it. Riza hesitated, almost listing off the complete list of symptoms, if you could call them that, before settling with the addendum of "Which started as you got overwhelmed by a pack of those creatures."


He almost wanted to snap back that he hadn't gotten overwhelmed, but he just didn't have the energy at the moment. Instead he crinkled his brow and thought about that. "Well...obviously it's a curse. All my powers are gone. But...what...you're saying you got them?" That was a pretty big claim.

How could she prove that? Rubedo couldn't even really think of how... He couldn't ask her to test her Ether powers, since he wasn't even sure how to explain to her how to use them. It was more of an innate knowledge.

The gray t-shirt was all that was left, and that was a pain to pull off, since it required peeling it away from his injuries, which left him gritting his teeth from the pain, necklace and earring reflecting the room's light as he flinched. Then, with a rough exhale, he dropped down to sit on the ground.

"...That can't be possible... My powers weren't...I mean... They weren't meant for any of the other U.R.--" He cut himself off there, as he had never actually told her about any of that. Averting his gaze to his injury for a distraction, he continued with a mutter. "...for normal people."


"It is approximately midnight, yes." Yes, a curse, of course a curse, but this- was this really within the realm of a curse? ...But yes, she knew it was, because it had already forced her to regard Kimblee as ...anything but what she considered him. And winding up with Jr.'s powers was more likely than her changing her mind on that count, in her mind.

The slash across his back looked painful. The palm of her hand tingled with a sense of something that could perhaps be done- but what, she couldn't heal, that was absurd. She shot things.

"It's the only plausible explanation I can come up with right now." Hawkeye shifted the rifle slung across her shoulder, hitching it up further on her shoulder. What among the things that had suddenly been thrown at her would be most distinctive, would help best to pinpoint whether it was in fact his powers or not? She could be wrong- something else could be happening.

"A second heartbeat on my right side."


Rubedo had just kept shaking his head in denial as he lifted his white shirt to tear off a few strips with his teeth. Makeshift bandages were his only hope, really... But he probably needed to clean up the wounds first. There had to be a bathroom in this place, right?

...Second heartbeat.

His gaze snapped back up at her, looking utterly stricken. That couldn't be possible! It wasn't like it was a real heartbeat. It was just one of those figments...but a part of him nonetheless. And the City had given it to someone else? Suddenly, he felt incredibly sick.

With a shake of his head, Rubedo stood up and give her a wary look. "...That's just... It's nothing. But if it's true, then that means you can heal me...at least a little bit. Here, focus on me and...damn, I don't know how to explain it... You need to use your Ether Drive, and maybe try Medica... Does that...ring any bells?" Just because she had his powers didn't mean she had the knowledge, but he could dream.


Jr's face immediately made Hawkeye feel as though she should have picked something- anything- else to bring up. His denial of it being anything important she accepted; he wasn't going to talk about it and she wasn't going to push it.

Ether Drive- was that what that sense was, the idea she'd had she could fix it, that weird power that was foreign to her? Medica. Hawkeye closed her eyes, focussing on the sense of the power, exploring it for something that resonated as Medica, something that was the root of the itch in her palm. Ah- there.

Acting on impulse, she spoke, stretching her palm out as she did so. "Ether Drive."


He'd half hoped it wouldn't work, but then he felt the warmth provided with the Ether ability, and he uttered out a sigh of relief as the pain lifted and his wounds healed. Not completely, of course, but his arm was no longer broken, and he wasn't going to bleed everywhere now. Some cleaning and light bandaging would fix the rest. It was new to her, so he didn't want to risk her using up her Ether power in case they got attacked again.

Opening his eyes, Rubedo lifted his right arm to test it out. The initial puncture wounds still hurt, but nothing like before. Sighing again, though this time out of irritation, he reached over so he could grip at the red tattoo of the Chinese dragon on his left arm, staring at her warily.

"...Thanks. But, you know... Shit. You aren't safe, Lieutenant." Leaning over, he snatched up his jacket and shirts before stalking past her to head towards the back in search of a bathroom. "You're a danger to others. Don't fight anymore today. However long this lasts... You can't fight."


Well that was weird. She wasn't supposed to have that ability. But he must be used to taking it for granted.

Hawkeye turned her hand over, staring at the palm, dropping it as he snatched up his clothes and walked past her. She squashed a surge of irritation as his warning came out; he was dealing with her having borrowed all his powers in the middle of a fight. And that ...roiling power in her mind was all too eager to run with it, and she wasn't eager to let it do any such thing.

Hawkeye took a seat on the staircase, resting her elbows on her knees. "You're talking about the ... pressure to go all out?" How to really explain the sensation, that wasn't really it, but that pressure seemed to be the most dangerous thing of what she seemed to have contracted.


Rubedo only nodded a bit as he continued into the small bathroom that was probably only for employees, but he really didn't care, since none of those employees were currently present. After locating a small first-aid kit beside the sink, he stepped out to flop onto the floor beside the stairs as he tried to think of a way to explain it to her without giving away too much about himself.

"It's...part of my unique wavelength. It's called Red Dragon Mode. It only comes out if I get too carried away in battle, or...I guess when I get really emotional. I've gotten better at controlling it so that it's not really a problem for me anymore, but...it's new for you. You won't know how to hold back in battle."

He winced a bit as he cleaned up his arm, though the blood made it look a lot worse than it was. Thanks to the Medica, it wouldn't need stitches. But...it was going to be difficult to wrap it himself, and there was no way he could clean and patch up his back.

Looking a bit sheepish, he glanced back up to her. "Sorry...do you mind helping me with this real quick?"


Hawkeye watched from her perch on the staircase as he cleaned himself up, absorbing what he was saying about this pulse she had now.

...Probably good she didn't have to deal with this all the time then, there had been some fights...she'd just lost it, with no help from a niggling presssure in the back of her head. They were exceptions, and few and far between, but still. Sniping she could always do without trouble, but he was probably right, getting into any real fights would be a bad idea. She didn't know what it could do if it succeeded in making her lose control. "You deal with this all the time?" It was a wonder he didn't have a constant migraine.

The Lieutenant shifted down to kneel down behind Jr., hand reaching out for the first aid kit even before she answered. "Of course." She knew how to wrap an injury; she'd seen it done enough times by now. And there was no way he'd be able to dress the scratches on his back properly by himself.

Hawkeye wrapped his arm first, as it was already cleaned, checking that the bandage wasn't overly tight before shifting back to start cleaning off the scratches running parallel along his back.


Rubedo stayed quiet as she went about bandaging him, trying to think of better ways to explain things to her. Really, did he actually need to explain anything? The Red Dragon was always a threat, but Riza wasn't exactly a hot headed person, and she listened to reason. If she said she was going to stay out of battle, then he trusted her. Maybe the power didn't nag her as much as it did him.

"...Thanks, Lieutenant," he murmured once she was finished, moving away to grab up the long sleeved-shirt to tug it on, careful not to mess up the bandages. The white shirt was a lost cause, so he just dumped that in a nearby trash can. "It looked like the fight outside was starting to die down, but it wouldn't be safe to try to go out there now. Maybe give it an hour or something."


It hadn't been a perfect patch job, but it was as good as it was going to get. "Not a problem." Hawkeye stood up again, tensing the muscles in her arms and legs before relaxing them again. The Red Dragon Mode niggled at her again, getting a firm mental shutdown back from the blonde.

She nodded agreement. She hadn't wanted to get in a hand-to-hand fight to begin with; it wasn't her forte, as her most recent fight had proven. And with this added mental distraction, close quarters fighting dropped a few more notches on the things she wanted to be doing. "If we head back upstairs, we'll have a better view of the area to tell if it's safe to leave." The window on the first floor wasn't a good vantage point, and it was closed, in any case.

With a nod, he closed up the first-aid kit, then pulled on his jacket. It was pretty much ruined, which was disappointing. He would have to either make a new one or go buy something else now.

"Yeah. Then I'm not sure if we should split up or if I should keep an eye on you... I guess I could just trust you to contact me on the Network if anything goes wrong."

Then Rubedo cracked a grin at her as he passed her on his way up the stairs. "Now I'm wondering if I should be the sniper."


Hawkeye winced at the shape of the jacket- if she'd been that little bit quicker, it might have been only a scratch. But there was no helping that, it'd been the City's doing.

"If it'll make you feel better, I don't have a problem with it." It was his power, after all. And she knew that him offering to just trust her if something went wrong was a big deal. She'd be walking off with all of his powers. "But I'll be doing my best to keep out of trouble in any case."

Riza smiled as she swung the rifle over her shoulder and followed the redhead up the stairs. "Want to try it?"


Rubedo thought it was best to stick close to Riza's side, but if a curse like this was going around, then he definitely had to return to the Durandal to check on Sakura and Shelley. He wished there was a way to check on Elena, but he wasn't sure if he was ready...

...She could take care of herself.

"You bet," he called out over his shoulder. He wasn't bad with rifles normally or anything, but he was no sniper. It would be pretty interesting to have that ability, if such a thing like that had truly been switched. A small thing like that would please him, especially if it meant helping out the people outside for however long it took.