Rufus Catch-All

[misstrust]

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Week 5: Saturday

[soulus]

[Later in the night, Rufus stops by orion with a glass of water in hand and the wolf standing beside him. He raps at the door once.]

[misstrust]

[ It takes a minute.

But gradually, there's the sound of shuffling and other noises and Dorothy gets the door open.

She's extremely pale and shivering, listing to one side on her uninjured leg, but she focuses on his face after a minute. ]

... Rufus?

[ Hi. ]

[soulus]

[His gaze drops to her injured leg and then up to her face.]

I brought some water. Why don't you take a seat?

[misstrust]

[ Every (one) time he visits, he always has to look at the leg, huh.

Well, Dorothy doesn't bother protesting, moving back slowly to let Rufus enter and just wobbling back to bed to sit on the edge of it. It could be a little embarrassing, since she's in a nightgown, but this is Dorothy and she feels terrible, so she doesn't really care.

Rupe is in the room, chilling! The horse is also chilling, though thankfully, Dorothy did not touch her during the trial, so she's just looking worried from where she's lying down. ]

Are you... checking on everyone? That's... quite a task...

[soulus]

[Rupe perks up at the sight of Rufus, who gives him a cursory glance before following Dorothy to the bed. The wolf, on the other hand, watches her the whole time.

Rufus holds out the glass of water.]

Hydration is important when you're feeling nauseous.

[misstrust]

[ Can't believe the wolf stares more than Rufus does, amazing. Also wow Rufus, love Rupe, he's a good boy??

Dorothy accepts the glass of water, tipping it back to take the world's most cautious sip. Look, she's already been sick to her stomach, she doesn't want to risk setting it off again. ]

Is... everyone else like this, right now?

[ Rufus and the occasional other person exempted. ]

[soulus]

[A little bit is better than nothing.]

I haven't seen everyone since the trial concluded . . . but that's most likely the case for the majority of participants.

[misstrust]

What an... unfortunate way to die... [ It's a low murmur, half to herself. ]

Then, how much do... I owe you, for this?

[soulus]

. . . You can repay me by living.

[misstrust]

... [ Dorothy is quiet for a moment, trembling fingers tightening on the glass to keep it from slipping from her grasp. Then, weakly-- ]

Should I shake on it?

[soulus]

No. We already did that weeks ago. The terms have grown since then, but the agreement remains.

[misstrust]

I don't intend... to die, so yes, I'll consider that an acceptable term.

[ She says, taking another careful sip of water. ]

I still need to... see things through.

[soulus]

If everything proceeds as planned, everyone should be able to see their matters through in the end.

[misstrust]

We have to. There's no other--

[ But then Dorothy stops herself with a pained noise-- and then the next moment, she's shoving the glass in Rufus' hand and making a beeline for the bathroom.

It's not the most graceful thing; in her haste, she's forced to put weight on her broken leg, but she does make it somehow.

And. Well. Retching noises, sorry Rufus. ]

[soulus]

[He wouldn't have judged if she'd regurgitated the contents of her stomach in front of him. Poison is poison. But he doesn't pursue when she flees to the bathroom, opting instead to wait before he acts beyond setting the glass down on the nightstand.

He waits. Should the sound of retching recede, he'll take a step in the direction of the bathroom, but stop there.]

[misstrust]

[ Look, Rufus might not have judged, but Dorothy is still a young Victorian woman and some things she'd rather avoid.

But the sounds do eventually stop.

And the door creaks open, only this time, Dorothy just kind of crumples one step out of the bathroom, grasping at the wall for support. ]

[soulus]

[The door opens, and Rufus moves. He considers grabbing her crutches, but decides against it as he approaches Dorothy.]

I will take you to bed and examine your leg.

[misstrust]

[ Dorothy, five shades paler than before, manages a nod.

Rufus can do whatever the hell he wants right now, she's not going to argue. ]

[soulus]

[It would be good if she managed to expel some of the poison by throwing up. If not, that still won't change the need for hydration.

He leans in to pick her up again, then carries her over to the bed, where he deposits her there with care for her broken leg. He stacks the pillows for her to sit up comfortably. Then he moves down to inspect the leg as promised; the nightgown makes access to the limb easy, but he glances at Dorothy's face first to ensure that this is a good time.]

[misstrust]

[ Oh, it's fine. Dorothy has already stripped enough in this game to guarantee she will never be a bride--

Which is to say that when he glances up, she meets his eyes and holds that gaze for three seconds, which should be easy enough to translate as permission.

Her leg-- is still broken! But also rather swollen tonight. ]

[soulus]

[With permission, he works swiftly. There isn't much to be done. The leg is swollen, so he enters the bathroom and exits with some towels that he folds to elevate the limb without bending it.]

The swelling has gotten worse.

[misstrust]

I think it should... improve, later. I've had to put some weight on it.

[ Unintentionally.

Well, and he also just saw the Olympic dash for the bathroom, but apparently this wasn't the first time. ]

... Thank you. [ It's a quieter murmur. ]

[soulus]

[He glances at her, accepting the gratitude in silence. Then he leaves the room, leaving the door ajar by an inch as he does, and returns a moment later with a towel and a medium bowl, which he sets down on the nightstand beside the water.]

Use this if you feel ill again.

[misstrust]

... I'm relieved you didn't contract this. It's a rather... miserable experience.

[ That bowl is probably going to be her best friend for the rest of the night. ]

[soulus]

At the very least, we know what we should do to avoid this next time.