the infirmary
Some of the many times that Kai is in the infirmary, for one reason or another. [Longshot-Kai-Yung-crew friendship, up until chapter 28]. Reference's boasamishipper's oneshot "Bound To Happen".
i.
Longshot had treated many types of injuries in his day.
His father had once spoken of him becoming a great doctor, to which his older brother would reply, "Yeah, if we had the money." But the fact remained that they didn't, but Longshot still managed to study medicine. He had done odd jobs for sea witches who worked in the healing arts, learning their ways. He had been a poorly paid sort of nurse for an old lady with children who were too busy to take care of her. Then, he had ended up on a pirate ship known as The Freedom Fighters, and their charismatic Captain Jet who had a few screws loose, but hey, it was a job patching people up, which was what Longshot did best.
But then Zaheer had offered better pay, and well, the rest of the crew was far friendlier than their Captain, and there was the most curious friendship between the first mate and a young boy, so Longshot had changed crews. Jet hadn't been very happy, but quite frankly, Longshot didn't really care.
What he cared about was the quality of the bandages in the infirmary cupboard. "Disgraceful," he muttered, seeing the weak, thin fabric. You'd bleed through it in minutes.
He'd have to talk to Zaheer, or whoever handled the finances, and get some real bandages at the next stop. Longshot was rummaging through the box of needles, wondering if they'd be sharp enough to pierce skin, when there was a knock at the door. It was the kid, with a black eye.
"Sparring accident," he shrugged, not seeming to care very much.
Longshot rolled his eyes.
The boy pouted. "I can usually hold my own, thank you very much. Ryu just didn't know his own strength this time. Are you going to fix my black eye or not?"
Longshot patted on the infirmary bed and the boy hopped onto it, as Longshot looked for a salve that would fix his eye up in no time. Where was it...? Third shelf, no, it wasn't green, it had more of a reddish colour to it - there it was. He snatched up the bottom and dabbed some of the substance onto a rag and handed it over to the kid.
"You don't talk much, do you?" the boy said curiously, holding the cloth up to his eye. Longshot just shrugged and grunted. "I think that's a good thing. That way when you do speak, people will really listen."
Then the first mate (Yung, Longshot remembered) came barging into the infirmary. "Kai! I told you not to spar with Ryu, he's too strong for you."
"I'm fine," Kai insisted. "Just a black eye, honestly Yung, I've had worse."
"You've been on this ship six months and you're already turning me grey kiddo," Yung said, shooting Kai an exasperated look. "Just spar with someone your own size next time, like me or Otaku, okay?" Kai muttered something under his breath. "Excuse me Kai, what was that?"
"I said fine," he grumbled, but Yung still didn't look satisfied.
"Thanks for taking care of this, Longshot," Yung said, his annoyance fading. "If there's anything I can do to help you get settled in, let me know. Kai," the kid got off the bed and handed the cloth back to Longshot, his eye already fading to a purplish sort of hue. "What do you say?"
"Thanks," Kai said cheerfully. "I'll try to make sure I'm not in here too often."
That, Longshot later learned, would be an absolute lie.
ii.
"What the hell made you think you could take Long Feng on your own, you idiot!"
"Zaheer was busy and-"
"Oh, shut up and sit down before I kill you myself," Yung grumbled. Yung had Kai's arm slung around his shoulder, supporting more than half of the young teenager's weight, as Kai limped into the infirmary. Longshot sighed as they entered. Really, he should have expected this.
Despite being a good deal younger than everyone, and only 14 years old, Kai was in the infirmary twice as much as anyone else. The medic crossed his arms over his chest, asking the wordless question of What happened this time? Longshot had been busy attending to a nasty blow to the head Ryu had gotten (and, besides a bruise, would have a full, speedy recovery) to notice how Kai had gotten hurt.
"He thought it'd be a good idea to challenge Long Feng by himself," Yung said testily. "And, well..." Kai's injury became obvious as he pulled away from the first mate, the teen's shirt sticky with blood off to the side. A small patch, thankfully.
"It's not deep," Longshot reported, surveying the wound, before he had Kai strip off his shirt and began cleaning it. Kai winced, biting back pain. "He'll be fine...so, what did you end up doing to Long Feng?"
Yung's lips twitched upwards. "A broken rib and a black eye."
Longshot nodded approvingly. "Not bad, kid."
"I'm not a kid anymore," Kai reminded him. Yung gave him a stern look. "But I promise, I won't go after Long Feng again by myself. Happy?"
"Not particularly," Yung sighed. "But I guess that's the best I'm gonna get from you." He glanced at Longshot. "Take care of him for me, would you? Zaheer wants everyone else's help loading the Dai Li's gold onto the ship."
Longshot snorted. Taking care of Kai was a 24/7 task he wasn't sure anyone was up to other than Yung. But, Longshot promised himself, he'd sure as hell try.
iii.
Even if Longshot didn't say it, he had always known there was tension between Kai and Zaheer. He had just never expected it would end up like this. Longshot sagged under Kai's dead weight, surprised that the boy (now a young man, bleeding out on the deck) could even weigh this much. He couldn't even feel relief when Yung and Otaku came to help, and took a deep breath to calm himself.
This wounds were bad, but he was a medic. This was his job. He could do this. He had to.
Once they had reached the infirmary, Longshot wasted no time knocking the teenager out before setting to work on cleaning the wounds. Thankfully, it was nothing he hadn't seen before.
"Is he-?" Otaku whimpered.
Longshot couldn't help but think about how much worse it would have been. "He's lost quite a lot of blood," Longshot explained, hating the way his voice wavered. "But he'll live."
"And he'll be Captain now," Yung said firmly, and Longshot thought it was fitting, that the boy that had saved them all would be their new leader. Longshot couldn't think of a better choice.
The medic was grateful when the room cleared out of the crew, it was uncomfortable and stuffy to have all of them in there, but he didn't even suggest that Yung should leave: he knew it wasn't up for debate. Longshot checked over Kai's wound and bandages one last time, and nodded, seeing them to his satisfaction, before he leaned against the wall to let his limbs rest.
He caught Yung's worried eyes. "He'll be okay Yung. Kai's always been strong."
"He's just a kid," Yung said, his eyes dropping to Kai's sleeping face. "How is it we let a kid face a man like Zaheer?"
"Kai's the only one who could hold his own against Zaheer," Longshot said simply. "You know that...but I know what you mean." 16 was awfully young. "D'you remember the first day I met him? With the black eye. Reckless idiot. I guess some things don't change with time."
"You're awfully chatty," Yung smiled. "So I guess some things do change."
Longshot smiled a little. "I guess so."
Kai groaned weakly, and his eyes fluttered open. Yung's smile grew. "Nice to have you back, Captain," he greeted.
iv.
Yung had never really gotten hurt before. Sure a few scrapes there, a few bruises here, but nothing substantial, nothing worrisome. Until today. Longshot could remember Kai's look of utter panic up on deck as Long Feng had stood over a bleeding Yung with a blade embedded in the first mate's side. He had looked so much like a scared little boy.
Then again, what else would you expect from a man who was seeing the closest thing he had ever had to a father had been stabbed?
Longshot was just grateful Kai had agreed to wait outside of the infirmary. Emotional people were distractions, and as much as Longshot understood the desire to be nearby, it was a desire that would have to go unfulfilled.
The surgery took two hours, to remove the blade but keep the blood inside Yung's body, to ensure no lasting internal damage of the muscles or organs, to clean the wound and then patch it up with a needle and thread, and finally, to wrap a heavy layer of gauze and bandages over it.
Longshot found Kai pacing in the hallway when he stepped out into the infirmary. "Well," he sighed.
He could see the terror in Kai's bright, young green eyes. The poor boy had only been Captain for a few months, still so young, so uncertain. So damaged. "Well, what?"
"He'll live."
A strangled sounding laugh, or sob, escaped the back of Kai's throat. He whispered something to himself, maybe a prayer of thanks to some god or something of the like.
Longshot wondered if this would make the boy more prudent, and mindful, of what he put the rest of them through whenever he got hurt. Probably not. But that was part of the reason they loved him.
v.
Whether or not Kai wanted to admit it, or perhaps had even acknowledged it, Longshot knew the Captain's feelings for Jinora Gyatso went much further then he let on. It was one of the benefits of being quiet; you were a natural observer. Even when the woman and the Captain had done nothing but argue, Longshot had seen the way Kai's eyes had lingered on her just a second too long to be nothing.
Longshot had heard the spike of fear in the Captain's voice, standing protectively over Jinora's limp body. His rage at Long Feng. His complete disregard of his own injury. ("Never mind that, just help her.") His gentleness as he scooped Jinora into his arms and carried her down to the infirmary, set her down carefully onto the bed. The wound wasn't deep, but it was gruesome to look at, yet Kai didn't look away, not even for an instant, as Longshot began to clean it.
"How did she get hurt anyway?" Longshot asked quietly, dipping the rag in the rubbing alcohol one more time. Just a bit more would do it.
He almost missed the flash of anger in Kai's eyes, which vanished as soon as it had come. "She..." he trailed off. "I wasn't paying attention, Long Feng - my back was turned and she…pushed me out of the way. She took the knife for me." Kai's voice wavered and he swore loudly.
Longshot frowned. So she had risked her life for him, an impulsive decision surely, but thankfully not a fatal one. But no wonder Kai was so distressed.
"Is she going to be okay?" the Captain asked.
Longshot gave him a small smile. "It isn't deep. We'll have to watch out for infection, but she should be fine, and she should wake up fairly soon, in a few hours."
He saw Kai's shoulders sag with relief, and then finally, the Captain allowed him to treat the head injury he had sustained. And then, when Kai stomped out of the room to go chew out Momo, the medic was grateful he wasn't the one Kai was angry at.
Even as Longshot patched up the rest of the crew (all minor injuries, small scrapes and bruises and nothing to worry about) he saw how Kai kept his eyes trained on Jinora's resting form. Kai stayed behind even as Longshot headed up with the rest of the crew for a very late and haphazard breakfast.
After the meal, Longshot came down the hall, and heard Jinora's voice, and then Kai's laughter, and then smiled.
It seemed like it was as good a time as any to get in on Yung's betting pool for when they'd get together.
vi.
Longshot had never felt worse in his entire life. Not when he had broken his arm when he was seven and had his first trip to the doctor. Not when the prettiest girl in school had turned him down in front of everyone. Not even when his father had sighed and told him there was absolutely no way they'd be able to pay for medical school.
Kai was dying, and there was nothing he could do about it.
Longshot had done all he could. He had gone over the injury a million times, sewn it together best he could, racked his brain for any solutions, coming up with nothing. He was exhausted, the stench of blood crawling inside him and coating his tongue, a heavy lump in his throat. It was a struggle to speak, to breathe.
Kai would stop breathing soon.
Longshot felt like he would collapse as he dragged himself out into the dining hall where the crew was gathered. The words sounded mechanical, detached in his mouth. It was the only way he could manage to say it.
Skoochy punched a wall. Jinora went into denial, half-yelling, half-sobbing. The dejected faces of everyone else felt like a punch to the gut - over and over and over again, only this time, like Kai, he couldn't fix it.
And then, suddenly, Momo was bloody brilliant, and there was a way, and a will, and somehow Longshot found the strength to keep walking and moving and working.
He finished the surgery at 5 o'clock in the morning, two hours after starting. As soon as Longshot was content that his work was done, he shared an exhausted, yet grateful look at Yung, and promptly burst into tears. He sank to his knees on the floor, sobbing, his thin frame trembling. Yung draped an arm over his shaking shoulders.
"You did it," Yung muttered, lightly rubbing his upper arm. "You saved him. It's alright Longshot." Longshot's cries quieted after a while, and he sniffled furiously. Yung helped him stand, and guided him over to a chair against the wall. "Get some rest. I'll handle everything else."
Longshot was fast asleep by the time Yung brought Jinora into the infirmary to wait by Kai.
vii.
Longshot had treated many types of injuries in his day.
He wasn't particularly worried when he scraped himself up sparring - a tiny cut along his forearm - but he was wary of infection, so he headed down to the infirmary after clapping a hand on Otaku's shoulder to assure the navigator he didn't blame him for the injury. He hadn't realized Kai had followed him. Finally, the Captain's wounds had healed enough over the three months since his fight with Zaheer that he could be as light on his feet as before.
Longshot glanced over his shoulder as Kai walked into the infirmary. "Here," Kai said cheerfully, crossing over to the cupboard and taking out a roll of gauze. "Let me handle that."
Longshot shook his head. "There's no need-"
"I want to," Kai insisted. "Captain's orders."
Longshot sighed, but held out his arm and let Kai roll up his sleeve. Kai carefully dabbed a wet cloth over the thin, shallow line of red, and then wrapped a few layers of gauze over it.
"You're always taking care of us," Kai said quietly, as he snipped the end of the gauze and tied it tightly into a secure knot. "Me especially. So let us take care of you, sometimes, alright?"
"Only if you do," Longshot countered.
The corner of Kai's mouth curved upwards. "Fair enough."
