Chapter 20: Damaged
A scratch of a pen was heard from across the room as Mikki stirred from her exhausted state. She was buried under the covers and clutching tightly to a pillow as she slowly poked her head out to see where the noise was coming from, seeing Swain fully dressed once more at his writing desk, scribbling away on a sheet of paper. Beatrice noticed she was moving and cawed at her, making her ears ring once more. Swain turned his head towards her as she blinked a couple times to get the sleep out of her eyes and rubbed at them with her small hand. "I would suggest you get something to eat and clean up before you decide to fall back asleep." He told her. All she could do as nod as she sat up and stretched, feeling every muscle in her body twitch and contract in pain and stiffness. He was still watching her when she glanced back at him and wonder what he was staring at so amusingly till it hit her. "Dammit, Swain, look the other way!" She yelled at him as she pulled the blanket over her still bare body and glanced around for her clothes.
Swain was smirking under his bandana as he listened to her grumble and shift under the covers, looking for her stockings. He turned back to what he was writing as Mikki finally slipped out of bed and gathered her clothes that now sat on the night stand. "Um, is it alright if I just use a bath here?" Mikki asked him cautiously as he raised his free hand in response. "Right behind you." He said as he kept up with his writing. He heard her pad away and open the door to the master bathroom and closed the door. Running water sounded as he topped off his letter to the Noxian councilmen and sealed it with wax. Swain pulled down another sheet of paper and started writing a note for the librarian and slipped it under the door to the bathroom before turning to leave the bedroom with Beatrice on his shoulder.
Meanwhile, Mikki soaked in the hot water, easing her sore body and mind from last night's romp. The scene played over and over, making her physically sick to her stomach on how easily he got to her. Curiosity was truly a curse to be feared. The sound of a slip of paper sounded from the door as she watched it get pushed through to her and listened to the footsteps walking away from the door as she figured Swain was going out somewhere. She grimaced as she moved to get out of the bath and dried off, still a little stiff and bow legged as she dressed back into her robes. After fixing up her hair, Mikki bent down and picked up the note from Swain and read it slowly. "You should teleport back to the library to avoid being seen leaving here. While I'm sure some saw you arrive, I want them to think you left in the late hours of the night while people were sleeping." Thinking of everything, that's just what he does as she sighed and walked out of the bathroom to the bedroom and used the pen he left on the desk to scribble a note under his own. "I understand and will have done so by the time you read this." She thought for a moment before setting the note and pen back down on the table.
Standing in the middle of his room, she set up her usual purple rune under her and set her destination to her own room. While the change to a familiar room put her at ease, she still felt as though she lost herself yesterday. Her frustration seemed gone as well as she mulled about her own room, sitting on her bed and staring at the ceiling of the library. The dull chatter downstairs made it clear that no matter what transpired last night will not affect the activity in the library. Her stomach growled loudly, almost threatening to burn through her to get what it wants as she sat back up and slowly made her way to the kitchen downstairs. She was greeted by some of the patrons and her employees as she walked to the kitchen. "So where you walk off to yesterday?" Rosaley asked curiously as she followed Mikki around the kitchen area, helping out where she could. "Just around Noxus. It's been a while since I had such a long stroll through town." She told her as she fixed up a egg sandwich to eat.
Rosaley tilted her head then grinned at her employer deviously. "I bet you went to go see the master tactician, didn't you?" She prodded as Mikki stared at her with some amount of shock, which only confirmed Rosaley's question. "For business, yes." Mikki told her as she started eating at her sandwich. The red head continued to grin at Mikki as she ate away at her sandwich. "Shouldn't you be working right now?" Mikki questioned her back as the grin slipped to a pout. "Oh come on, why won't you tell me?" She was sitting on the edge of her seat, wanting to know every juicy detail from Mikki. "Because you should be working on getting that line of patrons with their books all checked out." She pointed out as Rosaley huffed and left the kitchen, leaving Mikki to sigh heavily at the release of being questioned about her personal life and soon finished eating her sandwich.
It was early afternoon when Ryze walked through the front doors to visit. "It's good to see you again. How have you been?" Mikki asked him as they walked around the library slowly. "Good. I've been meaning to ask you if you could set some time aside so I can study the magic you use?" He asked her as she smiled lightly and nodded. "Of course, I'm taking today off if you'd like to go ahead and ask away and what you'd like to know." She told him, happy to get her mind off the plaguing thoughts of earlier. They stepped out and walked around the back of the library to the evergreen forest as Ryze asked her to explain the various colors of runes and what they do. "Well, you've seen my green healing rune, purple teleport rune and the rare red stun rune as I recall." She mused to herself as he nodded in agreement. "Yes, though, there are others I believe, correct?" He questioned as they walked about the edge of the outlining forest area behind the library. "Of course. Though, I really must ask why now of all times to ask me about this?" She counter questioned him as he crossed his arms loosely. "Well, I've been busy studying other's magic that it slipped my mind for a bit till recently."
Something pulled at the back of her mind as she listened to Ryze's answer as they continued to walk out through the forest pathways. Mikki noticed they reached the edge of the safeguard spell that surrounds the library as she turned to look at the man next to her, but was pulled just out of range of the pacifism spell and was wrapped up in a chain. At the end of the magical chain was none other than LeBlanc, grinning devilishly at her as the spell snapped and stunned Mikki where she stood. "I should have known." She growled at the deceiver "Should have, but too late, librarian." She remarked as she knocked Mikki further away from the barrier edge and set up another chain, stronger than the last as Mikki screamed at the pain of it breaking and stunning her down again. "I've warned you and you didn't listen like the little fool that you are." She continued as she knocked her staff across the librarian's face, leaving a giant staff shaped bruise on the left side of her face. A small line of blood trickled down her mouth from the cut inside of her mouth as Mikki stared angrily at LeBlanc. "Are you truly that upset over this that you'd stalk me and make sure I don't get close to him?" She inquired as she sat knelled down in front of LeBlanc.
LeBlanc only giggled evilly as she watched the librarian struggle to stand again. Before Mikki was able to stand, LeBlanc placed a foot on her right hand and slowly crushed it under heel, listening to the young librarian scream once more in pain. "It matters not now, does it?" She leaned over and pulled Mikki's face up to face her as she inspected the bruise she made with delight. "You're not leaving here as of now." She muttered as she kicked at Mikki's shoulder, pushing her further into the forest line as gasps and groans of pain came from the librarian's mouth. She flashed on the injured girl before her, causing more damage to her legs and torso as she stood there, watching her writhe in pain. "What's wrong? Cat's got your tongue?" She mused as she grinded her heel again into the right shoulder, hearing it pop loudly under the pressure as Mikki tried to pull out from under the heel. LeBlanc's staff settled itself on Mikki's chest, holding her there as the girl gasped loudly, staring up at the woman that's torturing her.
The pain was much worse than she imagined as she laid in the weeded forest line under the deceiver's heel and staff. She knew for sure her hand was broken and her shoulder dislocated from it's socket and started coughing heavily from the pressure on her chest, spitting up blood that pooled in her mouth from the cut. "Le-LeBlanc…s-stop this." She gasped at her as she continued to laugh at the sorry state she was in. The staff moved off her chest, but only for a moment before slamming back down onto her other shoulder, not quite dislocating that one, but still painful all the same as she cried out. "I don't think so. You'd be better off if you just stay here and rot with some of the fallen trees around her." She said darkly as she moved back to inspect her work on Mikki. There was no way she could move to get up at this point as she was on the verge of passing out from all the pain. With another laugh, she flashed back onto the librarian, waking her up with more pain as she glanced down at the torn and broken form of the librarian. "You look much better this way. On the edge of death just outside your little sanctuary." Mikki couldn't keep her eyes open as she leaned her head back against the ground and stared blankly at the branches above her.
A snap in the distance sounded from further in the forest as LeBlanc was about slam her staff back down into the girl's chest, startling her a bit. "I think you're going to be the next meal for the beasts out here. You're in no condition to move and you're openly bleeding which will make it much easier for them to find you." She said snidely as she flashed away, no longer to be heard. Even with the amount of will power she had left to stay awake, she couldn't tell if the person or beast was getting closer or not as she continued to stare up, looking beaten to a bloody pulp and extremely tired of being in so much pain. Another snap sounded a bit closer as she closed her eyes and cried weakly as she couldn't move her arms at all. She heard a slight chuckle from somewhere above her head as the steps now became more audible to her. "What's this, a child all beaten and torn and left to die?" The person said softly as she groaned and cracked her eyes open to see a man dressed in red step just slightly over her head, his pure white hair floating about his pail face as he watched her curiously. "Oh, I see you're not quite dead yet. Perhaps I came just in time?" He inquired as she tried to nod, but only succeeding in groaning at the pain of any movement.
He reached a clawed hand and pulled the blood that stained her robes and hair and slowly rotated the blood around his hands before letting flow down into Mikki's mouth, where she felt the blood slip back into the cut in small amounts and clot up as she felt less lightheaded but still in immense pain. "You look better, but sadly this is all I could do. Your physical injures are not something I can fix." He mused to her as she groaned at the fact. "Y-you're able to manipulate blood. You must be Vladimir." She muttered at the man as he bowed at the acknowledgement. "You'd be correct, miss. Now, who might you be, just to be fair?" He asked her curiously as Mikki tried nodding again, but winced in pain. "Mikki Halsnight." She put simply as she continued to look up at him with dull eyes. "Halsnight, such a lovely name." He smiled to himself as he moved around her, continuing to look her over. "Judging by that bruise, I say a certain Deceiver did this to you, correct?" Mikki could only sigh in response. "Yes."
Vlad stood still for a moment as he thought for a moment before looking over the broken librarian. "I guess I could take you to Noxus and help you get medical attention." He said as Mikki tried to smile at the idea. "If you could. I would be in your debt." She said to him gently as he moved to her side and slowly picked her up, princess style as she winced and cried a bit at her arm swinging loosely. He pulled her arm over her stomach to keep it from doing so as he dashed through the forest at a rate she never experience except in a carriage. They easily sped past the library as Vladimir continued his trek through the streets of Noxus and arrived at the Medical Center. As he neared the emergency door, they opened on their own and walked in to see patients and nurses alike staring at the sight of him holding a battered girl in his arms. He quickly got her checked in and left her to the doctors as they worked hard to reset the bones in her hand and pulled her arm back into it's socket. Thankfully, her legs and chest only suffered heavy bruising as well like her face as the nurses gently covered her with healing suave to ease the pain and to hopefully heal the bruises faster.
It was the middle of the night when everything was said and done as the doctors wanted to keep her over night to observe her to see if anything else was wrong with her as she leaned back into the uncomfortable hospital bed and sighed heavily. Her right hand was all covered to the point of not being able to move even her fingers and her shoulder being held by a splint to make sure it stays still while she sleeps. She thought the soreness from this morning was rough, this took the cake in her books as she laid there in pain, covered in smelly suave and unable to move to get comfortable. She wonder if she'd be able to have a message sent to the library, letting her assistants know that she won't be there again tomorrow or for a while yet as her shoulder heals up.
Mikki was about to drift off until she heard a click of the door opening to the room as she glanced weakly to see who it was. The tap of a cane announced who it was to her immediately as she sighed heavily and turned her head a bit more to see him properly. "Who did this to you?" Quick and to the point, like always as she huffed at him. "Not even a 'how do you feel' before the serious stuff." She muttered at him as he stepped up to her right side, looking at the cast and suave that covered half her face. "Later. So, who was it?" He pressed as she closed her eyes at him. "LeBlanc. She warned me not to get close and said she'd make me regret it." She told him as he glanced at her face, his own not telling her how he felt about this as she looked up at him. "I guess she did make you regret it." He whispered as Mikki shook her head at him. "No, she just beat me up and left me for dead, not make me regret anything." She said to him as he gazed at her with a raised eye brow. "Oh?" She smiled and nodded. "I regret nothing. She should have known I don't care about what happens to me." She mused as she chuckled lightly and winced.
Swain ran a hand through her hair as she looked up at him curiously. "You worried about me?" She asked him gently as he closed his eyes, hiding from her. "I'll be fine, though, could you do me a favor and let my employees that I won't be at the library for the next several days due to injuries?" She really wanted to let them know herself, but seeing as she can't move, Swain was plan B. He nodded at her as he bid her farewell for the night. Alone again, Mikki soon resumed drifting into her dull pained sleep.