Disclaimer: -checks- ...Yeah. Still don't own Dynasty Warriors. Oh well!
A/N: Again, I'm still slow with uploading these. Never mind. This is another AU fic based on the DW7 DLC outfits you can buy, only this time it's the 'School of Jin' ones. A DLC weapon also makes an appearance here (though I might not have got its exact appearance entirely right, sorry). ...So yeah. I hope this fic is as entertaining to read as it was for me to write, at least!
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So.
This was it, huh.
(Sigh..)
...You know... He couldn't actually summon up any surprise. Nothing at all – though it's not like that was.. er- surprising or anything.
…-
Okay, so that had been lame. Though he might as well go on regardless.
No surprise, but then again – how long had it been since something had truly shocked him? Never mind 'something', even.. anything. Full stop.
Yeah. ..His own mind was drawing a big, squiggly blank at least. ..It was weird.. Weird that some of the most startling facts, events and so on in his life always ended up being met with such.. apathy.
Like now.
..Sort of. If you took away the 'startling' part. But still..
Nothing. Absolutely nothing, bar the sense of inevitability, and the tiny.. tiny feeling of one walking to his own execution.
Ugh..
So this was the end of the line. The last stop. This was it – what was left? Certainly not his luck, which seemed to have drained away into a status of 'AWOL, damn it'.
Hah. And he'd run out of all his excus- no, legitimate reasons, too. A whole other miracle in itself.
...Well...
He supposed he'd had a nice life, considering...
...-
Ehh.. Why was he bothering. Why let these thoughts even enter his brain? He wasn't a moron (despite the popular, if ignorant opinion..). 'Coward' was even further from a correct description.
..Honestly? He was just bored.
..Though really, this had been a pathetic attempt at distracting himself in the first place, and...
...-
Oh, look. What do you know? Bored again.
(Sigh.)
Trudging after trudging after trudging.. This sure was taking a long time. Time, stretching out- well, it'd better not be. It did that far too often, slowing down enough to trail snails. ..Which was normally fine, but now it was just plain inconvenient.
If he had to do this in the first place, why couldn't he simply get it over with already? There were a million other ways he could be spending his time (most of which he really needed to be doing). So, you know.
..Though of course, Yuanji was going to kill him if he didn't show...
Urgh. Yeah. He had no choice in the matter. Whatsoever. That alone was literally the only reason necessary for him to not be doing what he did best (that lovely 'procrastinating' word) far, far away from here.
Sima Zhao stopped in front of his destination. Stared at it like a mindless drone. ..Fought back another sigh.
(..Make that far, far, far away..)
He didn't want to bolt. Not really. Though there was a weight in his stomach – that kind of heavy, yet nauseating one that sank just that little bit further the longer his mind stayed numbed. As long as that boredom kept himunderwhelmed, hanging like a thick fog inside his skull.
The pointlessness of it all (...as dramatic as that sounded).
Why am I here?
Hell, why was he here in general? And right now, why did he have to be here in particular? Seriously. Please, somebody, tell him the point.
(Rhetorical questions.. Dislikeable answers.)
Then Yuanji's face flashed once more into his mind's eye. Struck it – quick and sharp and brilliant and extraordinary and beautiful and-
-Definitely sometimes (a lot of times) possibly terrifying. ..Especially if you defied her when it came to matters like this.
Do you want to face... that again...?
(A no-brainer.)
He jolted into action and opened the door.
The clinic welcomed him. ..Not literally (though that would've made it much more interesting). Even if it could've, Sima Zhao would hardly have been warmed by all the detached 'professionalism' that radiated monotone. Really.. He didn't like 'overly cuddly' either, but he thought his father could at least have let them make the place a bit more.. cosy, or something.
…
(Yeah, he was putting this off. ..He should work on his 'let's just get this over with' mentality a little more.)
Traipsing over to the nurse at the desk ('receptionist' then? Oh, whatever), Zhao had barely formed something to say before the woman spoke for him. 'Over him', really. ..Always helpful when people did that.
"Ah, Sima Zhao, right? Glad you could make it. Go right on ahead, I'll tell him you've arrived."
"Great." He replied, none too enthusiastically. Moving away, he might as well have been operating on autopilot (...alright, that's because he was). Zhao's pace could've been described as leisurely as he ambled along, though the label was pretty much wrong as this was the speed he moved at all of the time. No need to alter it. Why make the effort.
The door with the nameplate 'Doctor' attached to it was open, so Sima Zhao presumed he didn't have to wait around when he could just enter. ..Though he'd better knock anyway. Adhere to 'propriety', as father occasionally rambled on at him about.
Plus, he needed to make a good impression. This was their personal (and highly praised) doctor they were talking about. Close friend of the family, and all that. Who knew what would happen to Zhao if he 'dared' to offend him or anything.
...It was funny, though. In a really, not laughable way.
'Doctor Guo'.. Something did not sit right with him about the man. ..Somehow. Yeah, yeah – even though Zhao barely knew him. His own fault, he supposed, for avoiding so many of these appointments all these years (or their faults, for not catching on sooner?).
Hmm.
..Still. He had met the doctor before, ages ago – though whatever had happened then was lost to his memory. It had been when Sima Zhao was very young, so he couldn't recall a thing.
(Except, possibly, a lingering.. unsettling feeling...)
Kind of creepy, if you wanted to think about it that way. ..A bit weak too, if not for something else that had been..- okay, bothering him for while now.
If Doctor Guo was a 'close family friend'.. How come Sima Zhao had not seen him since? ..As in, outside of a medical appointment. Father didn't have that many people he considered even vaguely trustworthy, so Zhao should've at least glimpsed him at a stuffy formal dinner or something.
…-
Or maybe he was reading too much into coincidences, didn't know the full picture, or was missing the point completely. Eh. It wasn't a big deal.
A muffled sound from within the room resembled some sort of response, so Sima Zhao was going to go with it. He supposed he'd head for that comfy-looking chair over there..
(Yeah. No big deal...)
The good doctor himself had his back turned to his 'patient', occupied with poring over some medical papers or what have you. (Who knew what it was. ..Who cared.)
Should he have even bothered about his first impression? It certainly seemed to be lacking from the other party.
Oh, but wait. Finally. Doctor Guo turned to meet Sima Zhao-
-Who almost blanched.
What.
The..?!
So this was what it felt like to be surprised, huh? He'd admit, he hadn't been expecting it. Though.. Why would you? Even if you believed that not every doctor looked like a stereotypical one (whatever that was supposed to be..).. This- this was...
A jolt. For even just a moment, of bafflement. ..No.. Not only that. Try 'disbelief', or even... a tiny bit of horror as well.
It was the man's face. ..Nothing wrong with it – not really. ..Nope, nothing at all – it was only a bit concerning that his skin was so pale it was translucent, with a visibly clammy, lurid sheen... Eyes hollowed by fatigue, sunken in and framed by exhaustion..Hair greying, but Zhao doubted it was the result of simple stress.
So yeah. Forgive him for being taken aback. Come on. Generally you at least suppose that the person responsible for your health (other than yourself) would look.. oh, relatively healthy themselves. ..Right..?
But wow.. This guy was like death warmed up.
(Hah, and naturally – didn't Zhao feel so much better already.)
Still.
Maybe the man was worse at making a decent 'first impression' than he'd thought. ..Maybe Sima Zhao himself was misinterpreting this, or making a rash judgement. Either way, it seemed to be best to look past what was (clearly) there.. at least for now.
Let's just hope I didn't look too much like a gaping fish or something.
…
Though it might not hurt to check that this is the right guy, regardless.
Just in case.
..You know.. Despite the whole 'doctor's get-up' he was wearing.
"You wanted to see me.. uh, Doctor Guo...?"
"Ah, yes.." The doctor nodded, adding to the confirmation (and, possibly, Sima Zhao's near.. disappointment). "You must be Sima Zhao, I believe...?"
The man's voice sounded strained, as though depleted from an attack by relentless malady. Or perhaps he just can't quit smoking..? No, wait. That thought wasn't comforting either.
"That's me." Sima Zhao responded, a little dully. Rhetorical questions didn't exactly inspire any more enthusiasm in him, particularly as they rarely ventured out of 'obvious' territory.
The answer was enough, however.
"Excellent. I am... Guo Huai-" Doctor Guo burst into a choked cough at the end of his introduction, before continuing. "It's an honour to meet another member of the esteemed Sima family. Lord Sima's second son, no less..!"
Sima Zhao didn't particularly feel like returning the beaming smile he was given, especially as it wasn't really for him.
"Yeah, well.." Father was great and all; he wasn't going to disagree with that – just... Why does he encourage everyone to call him by such a pretentious title? Sure, he was head of a prestigious family in addition to a school but.. 'Headmaster' did just fine, right? ..Or was he even that any more..?
Urgh.. Zhao barely knew these days. Or ever. He really should find out for sure and memorise it.
..After he got through this (hopefully in one piece) first.
Better try for a friendly expression. Go on.
"Pleased to meet you too, I guess." ...Wow, how overwhelming. It was a wonder he was still invited to all those formal parties, with the people skills he had.
Guo Huai barely batted an eyelid, however, as he sank down into his own chair behind the desk.
"Now then..." He turned the computer monitor on beside him, referring to his notes as he kept speaking. "Your father tells me it's been a while since you've last seen...-"
He paused, with a cough. Eyes widened.
"Oh..! Quite a while indeed..." He breathed, "Only four when you saw me, I see – so that's why I'd forgotten I'd met you..."
Sima Zhao shifted in his seat, trying to quash the queasy feeling which had bubbled up again.
"..And you've had-(splutter)- only one or two.. general check-ups since.." Doctor Guo raised his gaze to meet Zhao's, who met it without (much) remorse.
"Mm-hmm.." No point denying it. "With the other doctor who used to work here." Who didn't actually look like they were trying to sell something at Death's Door.
Now. Go on. Say it. He knew an upcoming 'I'm very disappointed in you' speech when he saw one. Everyone seemed totally happy to waft them (and the 'disapproving looks') in his direction, after all.
Not that he gave a damn about them. ..Hell, he wasn't lying to himself – he was the one who invited them (or didn't bother to not).
Then again. Something about this guy giving him a lecture about looking after his health.. grated on him. Just slightly.
"Look – I do look after my health, whatever you think. I eat my greens, I brush my teeth, regular exercise – yadda yadda yadda. And I do visit the doctor – more than once every fifteen years, actually. It just doesn't always fall neatly on the label of 'general check-up'.. And just because it isn't in your records doesn't mean it didn't happen."
True. Medical records were easy enough to hack into (or.. uh, mess up), or hide, or it was even easier to just go ahead and visit another clinic which actually kept his patient information confidential – even away from his godly great oh-so-concerned father (and, likely, company).
There were many possible reasons. Sima Zhao didn't feel like explaining to someone who wasn't going to understand, who would instead go and assume that it was automatically his fault. He was lazy, sure, but not when it came to his general health (which actually mattered).
...
….Alright, alright.. So he had skipped a few general check-ups, but the rest? Nothing to do with him. Shouldn't be his problem that they seemed to have practically no records filed about him. Why don't they just take better care of them, and leave me alone about it?
..That was another weird thing, now that he was thinking about this. The records. Would father really allow such a shoddy system, or had he deliber-
-No.
Whatever. Let's not go there at the minute.
One thing at a time...
This doctor being at the top of the list.
Disbelief superseded the disapproval for the time being, taking up residence in the man's (worryingly) bloodshot eyes.
"Hmm.."
Amazingly, he seemed to banish it away, for now.
"Well. We'll deal with your—cough- examination first. Anything else can be addressed later." Dabbing at the sweat on his forehead with a handkerchief for a few moments, Guo Huai got to business.
"To start – how have you been..." An interlude of coughing. "-Feeling? Any unusual..-cough- aches or—coughcoughcoughpains? …Anything otherwise of concern?"
Sima Zhao blinked. Um, besides you, you mean? He really wasn't appearing any less like he needed the treatment, and not the actual patient. ..But there you go..
"Nope. Nothing. I'm fine." Eyes that looked somehow dazed bored into him during the moment that followed. Sima Zhao didn't know whether to be exasperated or uneasy, but tried to go with the former.
...Tried. "Honestly, I can't think of anything." He said, shrugging. What else could he say that wasn't a downright lie (or very possibly irrational)?
"No trouble with your vision? Any hearing loss? Breathlessness, headaches or a blocked up nose? Untreated injuries?" Guo Huai insisted, heaving himself up, hands pressed on the table to steady him for a (prolonged) second.
Oh, come on. Really..!
Zhao heaved a sigh that was definitely exasperation this time. "I said I was fine. Doctor." The job title as a vaguely placating afterthought. "Absolutely nothing to report..!"
There is the dull nauseating feeling, but I think that's just in sympathy for you...
"Alright then," Doctor Guo accepted, reaching for a stethoscope with shaking, bony hands before making his way over to where Sima Zhao was sitting.
"This will just be a routine examination... Nothing to worry abo—ACHOO!"
Zhao jumped in the middle of undoing a few shirt buttons, giving the doctor a long look. His unease (and yes, concern) was only growing, and undoubtedly seeped through into his expression.
Mind-boggling...
Guo Huai finished blowing his nose into a tissue, and noticed he was being stared at. He simply threw the tissue into a bin.
"Catch it. Bin it. Kill it."
..Sage advice. Sure.
Sima Zhao resisted the urge to snort with laughter.
Is this some kind of joke?!
Though it wasn't even near April, that was the only thing which made sense. After all, why else would their personal family doctor be so blatantly,(even possibly gravely)ill? The guy looked like he'd pitch forward any minute (and be very unlikely to get back up again)..
After breathing on the end of the stethoscope to warm it (Sima Zhao winced at the action), coughing then having to wipe it down again..
(Urgh..)
Zhao, his second thoughts gaining more steam by now, nevertheless didn't even manage to lean back before the apparatus was pressed against his chest. He grimaced.
Doctor's got good reflexes, despite barely being able to stay upright.
(..Or did that in fact reflect more badly on himself ? ..Argh.. Training session, straight. After this.)
But yes.
Normally silences didn't bother him, however.. this one seemed to compound, or spotlight the malaise churning around in his stomach.
No problem – just think about something else.
..He had to think about something else.
No..-
He had to speak.
He had to.. ask.
"Listen.." The words came out with little conscious effort, desperate as they were to be released. He ploughed on. "Are you.. erm... Alright?"
...Okay..
So this silence was worse. If Sima Zhao were the cringing type, he might have done just that. It was weird enough for him to ask this normally, but to a doctor.. Who bore all the signs of being very ill, for a long time – genuinely unwell; completely obvious yet it seemed almost... stupid for it to be pointed out!
Just.. What the hell?
The look he was getting suggested that the doctor was as oblivious as he had consistently made himself out to be.
"Whatever do you mean?"
There wasn't a shred of a lie in his words. He was genuinely puzzled. ..Genuinely. Puzzled.
...No, Zhao mustn't sigh again. But.. Oh, brother.
"You... Well... You look ill, sir. There's no other way I could put it. ...Really, really.. ill."
"Is that so..?" Guo Huai said, curiously, as if contemplating interesting yet foreign words. "Well... I suppose I have been overworking recently." Phrased almost like an attempt to make his (incorrect) company feel better.
"Urgh.. No, I..-" Sima Zhao trailed off. No. What was the use for frustration..? It wasn't making sense, certainly, but Doctor Guo wasn't going to be of any help. The poor guy seemed to have no clue.
("Never mind..")
..Like, apparently, everyone else. You don't just start looking like that overnight – it's gradual, over something closer to years. Yet... neither his father nor anybody who knew him was remotely bothered.
In any way.
At the very least his father or brother would have noticed – but they didn't care at all? About a 'close family friend', praised by everyone (them included)? No.
So.. why? Why was this guy actually allowed to treat patients? And not be in his own sick bed? He treated father, for heaven's sake. Big high-flying brother, too. ...Every important member of his family he knew.
...Just...
Why... the...
Wh...
...-
Argh. I'm lost.
Was Sima Zhao the only one who even considered this? Or was he just the crazy one? He had to be missing something, surely. Though why hadn't he been told...?
Ah.
Perhaps father had told him. ..Perhaps – more likely – Shi had. Or he'd meant to. ..Could've slipped his mind. Both of them – any of them, especially since Zhao hadn't seen Guo Huai for so long, and had been avoiding such pointless appointments, and even a lot of things to do with his family in particular, these days. ..Not always literally. Sometimes he just.. tuned out.
He'd never been bothered..
Often, with reason. Father was increasingly busy, and brother was busy pursuing his increasing ambitions. Neither had time to be seen with 'the lazier, younger Sima', especially if they wanted to keep up their reputations.
Zhao wasn't exactly popular. ..Not like he bothered much with that either.
..Though this whole situation was making him think that he should make at least a bit more of an effort. Unfortunately, but he didn't like the idea that through a lack of it he could have missed some very important information (such as the reason for this).
..If there had been any at all, or if it would've been afforded to him in the first place. They might have assumed he was too apathetic to handle it.
...Or something. Whatever. Now really was not the time.
Guo Huai had moved to using an otoscope, which was currently being poked into Zhao's left ear. ..He hadn't seen it being spat or sneezed or spluttered on, thankfully, so this was a bit more tolerable.
That is, if you ignored the fact that Doctor Guo was now breathing inadvertently into his ear instead. Each inhale and exhale rattled in the man's chest, the latter reaching Sima Zhao as though it had had much to battle past while on its way there.
It was.. distracting.
(Yes. Worrying too. His heart wasn't encased in ice.)
Finding all that he could see in order, Guo Huai's laboured breaths soon moved to greet Zhao's right ear. This part wouldn't take long either, though Zhao still found himself wishing this whole 'examination' would hurry up.. Partly so the doctor could have a chance at experiencing badly needed respite.
(Partly, also, because he was hoping the guy wasn't contagious.)
Pulling back, Guo Huai turned to put the otoscope down.
"All's well th-" Vicious coughing broke free of him, time stretching to accommodate it.
Sima Zhao watched uncomfortably. And they wonder why I skip these things.
"Maybe some water would help..?" Possibly. Just at least try it, would you – do something..!
"N-(cough).. nonsense – there's no need. ..But thank you. Water is important, definitely.. I'll have some later. As should you." Doctor Guo dismissed, selecting a opthalmascope.
Zhao bit his tongue. Hard.
How can anybody be that.. unaware?!
"Please look into this," his examiner wheezed, blaring the device into his line of sight. Promptly, the world was scorched and blurred with inconvenient tears.
Left.
Right.
Up.
Down.
Bottom left.
Every..
Bottom right.
Single
Top left.
Time
Top right.
The beam shook, unsteadily...
"Done."
His focus turned back to normal after a few blinks, quickly enough to see Guo Huai almost wilt on the spot.
"Okay..." Tiredness gnarled his speech (..not like it had been absent before). Zhao kept his attention fixed on the man whose breathing seemed to punctuate every moment. Need to be fully alert -how is he actually still standing?
"You're fine so far. Almost done.. One last- (cough)... (cough).. step before you can.. go."
What the hell. He's coughing something.. up!...Blood...? ...Urgh. This guy. Why is he still..- What can I...- Argh.
Forget that this was totally nonsensical.. He was going to talk to someone. After this. ..Find out some kind of proper answer.
He had to do something, after all. Even if he wasn't listened to – he had to try.
...
(Yeah, it must be bad if he, Sima Zhao of all people was considering this.)
Either way. Why squander any more of their time? Neither of them needed to continue doing this. ..In fact, he was tempted to simply walk out. Right now. End it – he'd fulfilled his obligation (and avoided 'worse than death-by-Yuanji'), and it would be such a waste if this guy killed himself drawing it out any more than was necessary.
Yeah..
"How about we just call it a day here? You've 'examined' me, proved I'm right – I'm in good health, you'll agree.. So. No need to hang around. I'm sure you've got other things to do..."
Guo Huai let out a breath of amusement.
"Hah, not quite. Just your general vaccination to administer, then you're...(coughcough) free." More hacking. He wiped his mouth with a handkerchief, speaking again while Sima Zhao frowned.
"Please.. wait a moment. I have to retrieve the- (cough)... Night Nurse – (coughing)- to- (coughing) administer(cough)... the righ(coughing)f (COUGH)... vaccination."
...Uh...
Sima Zhao would have asked him to repeat that – coughing into a handkerchief really did muffle your words – but the man's ninja-like reflexes seemed to have been exercised again. He had already gone.
…
Sima Zhao sighed out loud.
Fine. He'd wait. He'd just gone to.. sort out the vaccination, right? That wouldn't take long. If he doesn't die en route-
No. Quiet. ...Try not to get too bored.
Besides, hadn't Doctor Guo mentioned some kind of nurse? Perhaps she would be doing the administering. Heh. So long as she wasn't as ill as her fellow doctor.
Hmm. It could be that 'receptionist'-
Or not.
He was back, quicker than expected. Guo Huai approached with weary if steady steps, but Sima Zhao was no longer paying attention to him.
No.. He was trying to figure out what the doctor was holding.
Some kind of contraption. Big in size, metal surrounding thick glass (probably). Scores of lines marked out on the glass, filled with some kind of liquid that was purplish in hue. The thick metal formed into a sturdy part to grip, along with a... trigger that could probably fi...-
…
A trigger-
So, a gun?! Wait.. That long, pointed end...-
..A...needle. Haha, he could've sworn, it looked like some huge needle, or-
Yes, even a gun.
A cannon-like gun.
...A cannon-like needle. An oversized-...
A..
...An...-
...What..?!
Just what. On. Earth was it?
Hmm.
Either way.. Ah...
He didn't like the way it was being pointed at him.
..In fact, he'd rather it wasn't in his general vicinity at all.
...Wait.
Was that-?!
..No. Ha. Nooo.. Surely not. That wasn't supposed to be the needle he would be injected with, was it? That would just be... Crazy... For so many reasons.
-Letters engraved on the metal: 'N-i-g-h-t-N-u-r-s-e'...-
..Oh.
...
(Nope. He did not just gulp.)
Another surprise I have to add to the pile today...?
…-
Regardless – that was it.
No more. No more. He'd just had enough. Just let him sleep, and maybe this could all have been some whacked out dream anyway.
I am out of here.
"Just have to-"
"I.. have to go...!" Interrupting with those parting words, Sima Zhao bolted, racing as quick as lightning out of the clinic altogether. Guo Huai barely had the time to register the swift exit, his speech trailing away into nothing but light wheezing.
"-Get it out of this... container..."
(Blink.)
(Blink.)
Doctor Guo heaved out a sigh, which morphed into a cough.
Oh, dear..
Perhaps... he should have expected him to do that..?