Monday, June 27, 2189
Erika awoke to the familiar noise of unfamiliar people hurrying outside her room. The wing she was housed in normally didn't have that level of activity, even when the Ringling Bros came around every month.
She considered getting up for a moment. Slowly, she raised her head, careful to not dislodge the intravenous drip on her arm. A sudden wave of nausea convinced her to abandon the effort. Stupid stomach. Erika grumbled silently, Why can't you behave for once?
The noises outside increased. Feet pounded the thinly carpeted floor, accompanied by the sound of squeaky wheelchairs. The racket started making Erika's head pound in sympathetic rhythm. Why can't they go away, just for a little bit? She thought angrily.
The emotion caught her off guard, snapping her back to reality. It's not their fault, I'm just a bit frustrated right now. The thought reduced the pain slightly, allowing her to relax more. While she was distracted, she almost didn't notice the decreasing level of traffic outside her door. At least, until a visitor arrived.
The door slid open, emitting the quiet warning chirp she'd asked to have installed. Erika turned to see her visitor, there wasn't anything scheduled on her record board.
A nurse paused in the doorway, allowing Erika to deny entrance if she wished, then stepped inside. She flashed a smile. "May I come in, Erika?"
Erika laughed weakly, "Come on in Ursula!" she called out. She waited until the pudgy nurse came a few steps closer before resuming normal volume. "How are you?"
The older woman walked diagonally to the beeping machines near the head of the bed, checking their numbers against her charts. "Oh, I'm doing well, thank you dearie. Did the noise bother you?"
"Not much," Erika shrugged. "It was a little loud at first, but it stopped pretty fast."
The nurse frowned, examining the supine girl. Erika knew she didn't look her best; lying in bed for days on end wasn't flattering for anyone after all, but she was used to it by this point.
"What was the problem?" she asked, smiling at the nurse.
"Oh, some celebrity or other came here to visit one of the patients. Commander something or other. Popular fellow these days," the nurse put down her checklist, scooting a chair closer. "Now, how's your stomach feeling?"
Erika grimaced, "About the same." She didn't mention the minor aches due to prolonged bed-rest, there was no point.
Ursula nodded sympathetically, "The new implant is going to take time, dear. Remember, the brain is very complex. Not even the salarians have completely mapped their own synaptic network." Her words, while well-intentioned, felt loosely rehearsed.
"It's all right," Erika responded, "I don't have to be anywhere soon." She lightened her words with as much of a smile as she could muster, reassuring the nurse. Still, her heart felt heavy at the lack of progress. It's been six weeks, and still no change. Why?
"Keep up the good attitude dearie," Ursula patted Erika's hand. "We'll try to do another scan soon. You're doing well enough though, that we can authorize your release today. I've also been asked to pass a message: your friends want you to join them at the Plaza."
Erika genuinely smiled, "That'd be great!"
The nurse pulled back, "I'll let the doctors know. I'll be back with Sebastian to take you over to Radiology, all right?"
Erika nodded affirmation, and watched the nurse leave the room.
[Break]
The Plaza was an open area deep within the Citadel. Centuries of upkeep gave the area a highly cultivated appearance. Small sections of green grass rose in miniature mounds throughout the floor, as groundcover was apparently universally green, while strange trees adorned the edges in tasteful symmetry.
They're not really that big, Erika thought to herself. I thought there would be at least some taller trees here … but I suppose there aren't as many resources for taller trees.
"Hey Erika!" One of her friends called from up ahead, "Come on, let's check out the mall!"
Erika smiled, hurrying her steps. Danielle was one of her best friends since middle school, and had visited biweekly since she'd been checked in to Huerta Memorial.
Danielle waited until Erika got close enough, then grabbed her hand. "Let's grab some ice cream while we're here, chocolate mint, right?"
The kiosk was run by a familiar salarian. Like most of his kind, he was tall and lanky, with large eyes observing everything around him. Erika thought he looked a little silly, with the human style apron and hat, but he seemed to enjoy his job.
"Hello ladies," he greeted them as they approached, "How are you today?"
Erika caught his inhumanly fast glance at the tube attached to the side of her face, but ignored it. If she became worried about everyone, she'd spend all of her time being nervous. "We're fine," she answered, tucking a stray hair back. "Could I have a sundae, two scoops chocolate mint?"
"Of course! Of course!" The employees' hands blurred into motion, selecting a container and scooping out a pair of generous servings of the confection. "What toppings would you like?"
Erika let him do his work, gazing around the Plaza. After the War, one of the first priorities on the Citadel had been this location. Psychological reasons aside, it was a very pretty place, even if the human Victory Garden concept had been a bit misunderstood.
The duo spent several more hours strolling through the Plaza, visiting a cinema for what was the first time in months for Erika. It wasn't much, but the simple action of being outdoors in sunlight did wonders for her. Even if it was artificial sunlight.
Unfortunately, in the rush to exit the cinema, Erika lost track of her friends. The crowd of people shoved between her and Danielle, and her height was limited … particularly when an elcor managed to wedge her between a wall and itself.
"Um, excuse me?" She tried to get the two hundred kilo alien's attention. It didn't work. She tried again. "Sir? Hello?"
Still no response.
Erika, feeling fed up, slapped the massive being's side. "Hey! I'm talking to you!"
The powerful muscles stretching above her head rippled, the elcor slowly turned to face her. His dull monotone voice didn't match the sharp intelligent glittering in his eyes.
"Politely: Pardon, human. With mild annoyance: Why are you striking me?"
Erika raised an eyebrow. "You almost squished me."
The slow alien managed to look horrified. "Truthfully: I did not know that. I am most sorry."
Erika sighed, shoulders drooping. The pain from the day's exertion was beginning to call its due. "That's all right. I guess it's kinda hard to see someone back here."
The elcor's mournful expression creased even more deeply. He shuffled sideways, creating a break wall, shunting away the oncoming crowd. "Curiously: Where were you travelling? Do you seek someone?"
"Um, yeah." Erika looked around hopefully. "I came here with my friend, but we got separated."
The elcor slowly nodded. "With understanding: Ah. Now I understand." His body began skidding sideways, pushed by the relentless crowd. "Politely: Would you care for some assistance?" He grunted, shoving backwards against a mass of turians that had locked formation against his bulk. "With pride: I can carry you through the crowd." His massive legs shuddered, "Anxiously: Please hurry."
Erika scrambled, ignoring the painful twinges sparking riots in her arms. The weakness caught up to her halfway to her goal, and she barely managed to reach the top.
"I'm here," she called towards the gentle giant's head.
Immediately, the weighty alien rotated back into the stream of people. The turian knot backed behind him just laughed, swirling off to one side as he gradually began moving forwards. The ride was fairly smooth, with faint lurching motions. It was rather entertaining, despite the faint twinges beginning to overcome her willpower.
The crowd swirled around her mount, none impeding his progress. Another elcor began stalking alongside her, shouldering aside pedestrians with contemptuous ease. Between the two powerful, if slow-moving, bodyguards, Erika reached the exit fairly quickly.
She bid her guide farewell, and hurried farther away from the doorway, eagerly seeking any sign of Danielle.
A burning pain flared down her spine, forcing Erika to sit on a nearby planter. The pain was growing, despite the medications she'd taken. I have to get home. Maybe I pushed it too far?
The crowd passing made a quiet humming rumble, soothing in its own way. Carefully, she stretched back, relaxing as much tension as she could. The cold planter, plus the background noise, helped somewhat.
She was just beginning to drowsily consider calling a taxi, when a deep baritone jerked her awake.
"Excuse me, miss. Are you all right?"
Erika looked up. A tall, light-haired human was looking down at her worriedly. Something vaguely female registered as behind him, but Erika wasn't able to pay as much attention. The nauseating feeling was coming back, and hitting her harder than a loaded truck.
"I'll be fine." She managed a smile. "Just something I have to deal with."
The light-haired man motioned vaguely, and the woman behind him moved away. Erika wasn't sure, but she thought something metallic had glinted off both their hands. Huh. Married, so probably not an attack. She still felt vaguely worried as he sat down behind her head, adjusting his seat.
"My wife just went to get a taxi. You can hitch a ride with us, if you want."
Erika sighed. "Thanks, but I'm waiting for my friend. She's probably worried."
He looked down at her. "Have you tried calling her?"
She held up her wrist. "No omni-tool. I just got out of the hospital today, and didn't get it back before we headed for the Plaza."
"Hmm." Her companion hummed acknowledgement. They sat in silence, watching traffic fly past. The quiet atmosphere grew as time stretched on, until he spoke again. "Want to tell me about it? I've had to get a lot of therapy myself." He shook his head. "Formerly Alliance soldier, then with all the Reaper activity …" he waved vaguely, "it messed me up a lot."
Erika hissed. "I imagine." She let the sound of passers-by walking fill the gap, before finally conceding defeat. "I have something called dysautonomia. Essentially, it means my nervous system backfires every once in a while … not in a pleasant way."
"Ah." The stranger nodded sagely. "And that would cause issues with any activity … at all, really."
"Yeah." Erika sighed. "No baseball, hockey is out. Even homework gets to be too much sometimes, especially when I can't go to class …" She fought back tears. "It's not a great deal of fun."
Her newfound friend nodded. "I had something similar to that, a few years back."
Erika snorted. People had a habit of saying things like that, proving they knew what it was like. "Pardon," she didn't care if her tone was sharp, "but I doubt that."
His eyebrows shot up.
She continued. "I don't think you know what it's like. To wake up tired after ten hours of sleep, every day for a week. To not eat more than my stomach can hold, because it can't stretch." She sat up, glaring at him. "I throw up any time I eat just a little more than I can hold, then have to spend the next two days recovering!"
Her head started feeling heavy, so Erika let it fall, supporting it with both hands. "Keeping up with class work is a nightmare. I have to get medical exemptions every month. Just to have an average grade."
Erika let her hands cover her mouth, muffling her speech. "The worst part is having to be so dependent on everyone and everything except yourself. I can't have my own apartment, I can't hold down a job …" the station's walls seemed to lean inwards. "Don't tell me you understand. You don't."
For a moment, she thought she'd insulted the stranger.
Then, he started laughing. "That's me being told." He chortled, dark eyes flashing amusedly. He shifted back. "Don't worry, I won't try that."
Erika blushed. "Sorry, I didn't mean –"
"But you did." The stranger interrupted. "And that I understand quite well." His face aged tremendously, gaining what seemed to be a century in seconds. "Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder isn't something to mess around with either. I've had good men fall apart …." He stopped talking, then looked back at her. "But you see, I don't understand, but I know."
She studied his face carefully. Scars lined one side of his face, parallel lines looking like claw marks tracing the outline of his jaw. The exposed portion of his neck appeared to have … bite marks … from something enormous. He certainly would have reason … apparently.
Conscious of her examination, the man shrugged. "Don't worry. Everyone does it." He smirked. "My wife's a biter."
They were interrupted as a frantic voice shrieked just beyond them. "Erika! Where were you! I almost called C-Sec, your mom was going to kill me and –" Danielle caught Erika in an enormous hug, almost pushing her back into the planter before pulling away. She examined Erika closely, "You're not looking good. You need to go home. Why didn't you say anything? We could have left hours ago."
Erika gave the stranger a smile as her friend chivvied her towards the taxi stand. "Thank you, sir. Sorry I didn't get your name."
The stranger smiled, raising one hand in farewell. "Good luck, Erika. Just call me Shepard."
The door on the taxi slid shut, and Erika was soon on her way home.
A/N: Hello all, and thank you for reading! I would like to dedicate this story to DYNA, for a friend of mine whom suffers from Dysatonomia. She has been through hell, and still is one of the most optimistic individuals I have been privileged to know.
So here's the pitch. DYNA ( Dysautonomia Youth Network of America) does volunteer work, and could use some publicity. If anyone wants to copy, borrow, or otherwise use this story, please feel free!
I originally got the idea from Rorschach's Blot "Make a Wish" fic, a figured, If he can do that, I can too.
Kudos to Nightstride, my never-fail Beta, and Fainmaca, an inspirational writer who writes an AWESOME Jack.
Hope you all enjoyed!