Look at it this way: things could have been a looooot worse!

-Neptune


IF slowly returned to conciousness in a place she did not recognise. The walls were white and upon trying to turn, she found that she could not do so. Her arm was in a splint, which was held in a sling right above her bed.

She interrupted her roll and returned to her previous position, turning only her head instead. It was a small room but mostly white, smelling of something familiar and antiseptics. A hospital. The first time she had to wake up in such a place since she was appointed.

At least, she thought, her arm appeared to be fine. Not completely better yet, but at least they managed to piece it back together; it merely throbbed lightly instead of burning. She could even wiggle her fingers; that meant she was most likely able to return to duty soon, a bit of a relief. IF did not want to stop yet.

"Good morning, sunshine."

The gentle words chased away her previous thoughts, a quick glance revealing Neptune by her bedside; she sat closer, just out of her field of vision, and smiled. "You slept about sixteen hours. They had you under anaesthetics for a few while putting your arm back together; you were lucky I was there to fix the nerve damage that quickly."

IF took this in quietly and allowed herself a deep breath. Then she answered: "Hey Nep." There was no need to address the other part, they both understood everything that had and had not been said. With herself sorted out however, IF got worried. "What about Tekken?"

She did not like the purplette's grimace. "Same as you, but we had to treat some damage to her organs as well. She is fine and she will be alright as well. Could have been worse, but that kind of thing isn't nice to feel with magic." Neptune shuddered in remembered revulsion, but threw off the expression in favour of helping IF to sit up and get her arm out of the sling. "Here you go. You need the toilet?"

IF just nodded and made her way over to the small bathroom connected to where she had been resting. "They'd have given you a tube if you'd slept longer!" Neptune called after her, making the brunette shudder. She never wanted that kind of tube if she could prevent it.

Once she had taken care of her basic needs and returned to her bed, Neptune called one of the nurses to look her over, which was followed by a doctor giving her a more detailed explanation of what the purplette already told her.

"That is about all," the man closed with a friendly smile. "We would normally keep you here another day so you can recover from the shock, but that's not necessary for a Maker. We can have you discharged within the hour."

Truthfully, IF was quite happy about that. She never liked hospitals. "That's good to hear, thank you. Could you take care of that right away?"

"Of course. We will send a nurse to notify you once the necessary steps have been undertaken." He shook her hand and left to get back to work while IF sighed. Neptune appeared thoughtful, though.

"I'm not sure what to make of that," she told the younger woman while she helped her dress; Neptune brought a change of clothes earlier. "I'm pretty sure there are no exceptions for Makers in the rules; I get that you're more accustomed to pain and injury because of your jobs, but eh."

The purplette carefully slipped IF's bound arm through her shirt's sleeve and then made sure the rest could be pulled over the brunette's head before continuing: "It's mainly meant to help people calm down and keep an eye on them for a bit, though a lot of patients get impatient; no need to have a Maker sit around twiddling her thumbs... nah, just her thumb."

"I guess that makes sense," IF answered without reacting to the silly joke. She carefully slid her fresh coat on before spreading the used one onto the bed. "Mind helping me with the pockets?"

"Nope."

And thus Neptune stood right next to her, unclasping and unzipping all of IF's many pockets. Doing so with one hand would have been tedious, so she was thankful for the help; she methodically went over her coat, taking out everything and placing it in the corresponding pockets on the one she wore. Tissues, ammunition, her wallet, a flyer for a bar she had been given, her keyring, her cellphone, and her pistol. The last one went into the old holster on her leg, though.

IF could not help but feel a little sad when she looked at the damaged piece of clothing; its left arm was ripped off where the Clione had hit her. Only a few traces of dark brown, dried, blood though. Curious.

"Did they clean my coat?"

"Hm? Ah, yeah." Neptune pointed at the frayed cloth where the garment had been torn. "They cut off the sleeve that still held to get your arm free, and they cut your katar's wristband too." IF blinked and dove for the container holding her weapons, which made Neptune giggle. "Hehe, yeah. Anyway, they cleaned your blood off as best as they could in case you want to have it fixed instead of throwing it away."

Meanwhile, IF spread her trusted katars on top of the coat; they had not been cleaned and one lacked, just as her friend said, the entire glovelike fastening belt. The blades were still in good condition, though she was not sure whether she imagined the slightest dent in one of them. "Do you think Uni will understand?"

The purplette looked over IF's weapons and slapped her uninjured shoulder. "Yeah, she will. I know you expect Noire and Uni to become banshees if you break their work, but they understand. They totally do the banshee thing if you break it through recklessness or on purpose, though." Both exchanged grins this time; IF actually found the quip funny.

Then however, Neptune's grin fell away and she poked the brunette's chest somewhat harshly. "Anyway, a few rules. Tekken has it worse than you because she was hit harder, but that does not mean you're out of it." Her serious tone made IF listen and stay quiet even though the finger poked her chest again.

"You will rest for a week. No exercises, no work. Are we clear?" Neptune's last words actually fell into Purple Heart's vocal range, the deep and mature voice being crassly at odds with the slip of a girl speeking to her. It only hammered home the message and IF quickly nodded, several times at that.

Neptune hiccupped, then smiled. "Good!" And her voice was back to normal; IF took a step back just in case, though. If this was the kind of strict her friend could be if she truly meant it, that put the past years in a completely different light. IF could remember one, maybe two instances where Neptune slipped into her deeper voice, and none had been about making sure IF behaved.

After a moment of silence, Neptune sighed and closed the distance again, wrapping her arms around IF. The younger woman let her and awkwardly hugged her back with the one arm she had available.

Only a handful of words told IF what this was about: "I'm just glad nothing worse happened."

She did not know what to say to that; there was genuine affection in most of what Neptune did, but she never really let herself go like that. Or rather, so rarely that IF could hardly remember another time where the purplette indulged in her own desires instead of tending to someone else's.

They separated a little later, both women in higher spirits than they were in before. "Now," Neptune told her human friend with a grin, "you have a week off and two more weeks of work here afterward. Any ideas how you wanna spend your free time? That cast comes off the day after tomorrow."

"I might get drunk after all," IF answered her drily, then laughed about her friend's flabbergasted expression. It quickly translated into a pout while she continued to chuckle, then returned to outright laughing when she saw Neptune's reaction.

After a minute or so, IF caught herself and took a deep breath, feeling lighter than before. "Ahhh, sorry. I was only half joking, really. After meeting that Clione, I feel like doing something new." She did not say it, but Neptune knew for a fact that it was the close brush with death IF had. The young Maker did not try to hide that, she was simply aware her divine friend would be able to tell either way. "And, uh, I kind of tempted fate beforehand and promised I'd buy the girls a drink if I jinxed us. I'll probably have to pay for them getting wasted anyway, so I might as well join."

Now it was for Neptune to giggle, though the purplette winked at her cheerfully moments later. "Aww, you should stay sober. Might take someone home with you if you play your cards right." She laughed over how much exasperation IF could fit into a single eyeroll, then nudged her with an elbow. "Besides, aren't you a little young to drink here in Leanbox?"

IF merely offered a huff and made to close her pockets. "I was told that people don't look that closely when Makers are involved."

"True, true. Maybe I should tag along, eh?"

The human woman merely rolled her eyes again. She knew her friend well enough to know what this was about. "So they get a shock when the girl that looks fifteen turns out to be thirty, or whatever your ID says?"

"You know me so well!" Neptune giggled again and moved to help IF with her clasps and buckles. "Want some recommendations for places to go?"

"Sure."

She definitely would not be wanting for things to do during her impromptu vacation; on the other hand, this actually gave her time to visit the greenhouse again. IF did like the place.

. .

. .

A little while later, once a nurse had dropped in to tell her she could leave whenever she was ready, Maker and CPU left the private room IF had been placed in. Outside were two familiar faces, one framed by red and the other by blue hair.

5pb. greeted them with a smile while Cave offered a nod; the idol held a sheet of paper and had been sitting in front of a small table, with her companion leaning against the next wall. The place was a little bit distant from the regular rooms, but IF could see busy nurses walking around just down the corridor.

"It's good to see you up," the blunette opened happily while stepping closer. IF bumped fists with her out of habit, then did the same with Cave.

"Yeah, I'm happy to be up. How are you two?"

"Unharmed," Cave interjected before 5pb. could say anything. "We received no injury at all." The blunette's face twitched and she rolled her eyes a moment later, though no comment about her companion's behaviour followed.

"Come on, Cave! You could at least say you're happy she's alright!" Neptune did not seem to care for the situation, seeing that she easily danced around the three and clapped Cave's shoulder with a big grin.

The redhead, in turn, eyed her with a bit of confusion. "I never said I am not happy." That, admittedly, gave her a far more thorough idea of what Cave was like than IF got from working with her for a week. She offered her fellow Maker a grin and made to look around.

"How about we get going? Any chance I can go see Tek?"

The mention of the other injured Maker produced a sad headshake from 5pb., though the group of four did start to walk. "Not right now, no. Her family is with her, so we shouldn't bother them today." IF nodded understandingly and dropped the matter. Or rather, she attempted to do so. Cave made an unintended attempt at poking her conscience.

"She will be here for a while. Probably a month, even with our Lady tending to her." This made the youngest in their group frown, but she could not really say anything to that aside from a general response: "Ouch."

It did quite well in summarising her thoughts; not only would Tekken be forced to stay cooped up and away from her peers for that long, she would also be barred from the training she loved so much. IF knew from experience how weird it felt to fall out of one's routine, wanting to simply do as she always did but being unable to.

"Yeah, but don't worry," Neptune chirped in response while hanging onto IF's good shoulder. "She's a tough cookie, will be back out and punching things dead soon." Her comment led to snorts from IF and, surprisingly, Cave. The staff paid them little mind as they left, far too busy as hospital staff often was.

"Oh, and you owe us drinks," 5pb. told her drily once they were out of the vicinity of other people. "And not just one," she added. Cave nodded solemnly, as did IF.

"Yep. I'll do you one better and drink them with you." She grinned at her colleagues while Neptune 'mysteriously' vanished; 5pb. tried to call after the purplette, but IF shook her head. "Don't. She does that kind of thing. Chances are she will show up later."

"I see..." She obviously did not, but dropped the matter. IF wondered how long it had been since anything Neptune did truly phased her. The purplette usually stayed within her own brand of weirdness, which, while rarely predictable, could still be roughly expected. She did not know when or why, but the what or how did not really change.

Then again, she recently stood before the ninth living CPU. After that, IF's expectations for the world may have simply been skewed too much.

Either way, she felt it was about time to change the topic: "The better question is whether we wait for Tek before you give emptying my wallet a shot." Her dry tone prompted a giggle from 5pb., though the relaxed expression quickly vanished together with the blunette herself when they actually left the hospital.

IF rolled her eyes and closed with Cave to make the distance between them not stand out. "Any places she'd like to go?" She did not even comment on the fact 5pb. just turned invisible.

"Home always works," the redhead... quipped, IF would say. Her tone did not change, but the response itself definitely was a quip. The younger woman nodded thoughtfully, but waited with any commentary in case her still visible companion had more to offer; which she had: "the greenhouse is a favourite of ours, as is our lounge." She listed off a few more locations as they walked, the people around giving them a little space.

IF was quite happy for the fact she had her coat; the long sleeve made it so she could actually hide her arm. Neptune had run off with her things earlier and the matter almost slipped her mind. "I'm fine with anything, really. Need to call Uni sometime soon, though. She won't be happy that I have work for her."

Or maybe she would be happy about more work, considering she was Lastationite. IF decided not to think about that too much. "Aside from that, do you have any preferences?" Her stomach ached, reminding her that she needed food. "Preferably where we can eat something?"

Cave eyed her curiously, then looked around. An older man not far from them raised his hand in a wave, then pointed down the street; when the girls followed his finger, they found a cozy-looking bakery. He grinned and kept walking, apparently having heard IF's question. Cave nodded back and IF followed her example quickly.

People in Leanbox were different; almost as open as Planeptunians, though it was mostly the young here where it was the elderly back at home. People in Lowee and Lastation generally left Makers be by themselves, everyone having their own business to attend to and being considerate of them.

The children were roughly the same everywhere, though. Gawking, smiling, waving, whenever they actually got to see a Maker in the flesh.

"Anything you want?" Cave's question was quiet, directed more toward the empty air. When 5pb. whispered back, IF understood that the blunette was still around. She could not help but grin, yet left it at that. She was hungry and dearly hoped that there was something tasty to be found.

. .

. .

"Ugh."

If the fact Uni slumped against her like a sack of potatoes was any indication, Nepgear figured that her girlfriend did not get good news. It did not concern her too much, though; Neptune already called hours ago to tell them IF was fine. Everyone was fine, if a little messed up.

She had never been as scared as when she got that call. Uni too, no matter how much she played over it to comfort Nepgear.

"Something happen?" She carefully shifted her weight to get the younger CPU's head on her shoulder, then began to card through her silky hair in soothing motions.

Uni sighed and relaxed slightly, her frown dissipating. "IF. She needs new straps for her katars at least, and maybe even an overhaul if the blades are actually affected." Uni turned and cuddled into Nepgear's side, the purplette happily wrapping an arm around her. "She's fit enough to give me extra work already, so you don't need to worry about her anymore."

Of course she noticed; despite the fact she already knew her friend was fine, it still nagged at her. Nepgear let out a sigh in return and thoughtlessly rested her head on Uni's. "I don't think I will stop worrying until I've seen her with my own eyes. Since when do you complain about having work, though?"

"Since I have a girlfriend I rather spend my time with." It was a mix of truth and flattery, but Nepgear felt her embarassment surge nonetheless. She allowed her cheeks to turn pink and pressed a kiss on Uni's forehead in response.

While it had been a good nine months since the two of them became a couple, the sensation of having something new had yet to subside. They were CPUs though, so Nepgear could imagine that kind of feeling to persist for a long time. Either way, she gently squeezed Uni's shoulder and pulled her a little closer. No more words were needed for now, both of them simply enjoyed the comfort of the other's presence.

. .

. .

A quiet week passed in Leanbox; with the grand assault the Makers had begun before the Clione interrupted them, many monsters were felled. This meant that even with their heaviest hitters staying behind to recuperate, 5pb. and Cave could deal with the remaining numbers well enough.

In a display of defiance which the CPUs would tease Neptune about for ages however, IF had foregone rest in favour of a seat in the operators' lounge, assisting her colleagues from there. She could not command drones, but feeding them intel while others took care of procuring it was still possible for her.

On the side, the young woman learned many things about operating duty.

"For one, those jerks get to sit in cozy rooms all day all year, with snacks and drinks," she told a giggling Tekken. It was quite different from field work without doubt, though IF did not feel too comfortable with it. She did not think it was easier by any stretch, but everyone liked to complain. "At least the people are nice."

"Which might have been because you are Maker and outrank all of them," Cave returned without missing a beat. The redhead leaned on the wall next to Tekken's bed, with 5pb. alone taking up one of the two chairs and sitting next to their recuperating teammate.

IF herself, finally free of the cast on her arm and ready to go back to her usual exercises, stood on Tekken's other side.

"Well, it's nice that you've been giving us moral support." 5pb. smiled weakly and motioned for Cave. "It's more difficult with just us two, though we manage. Having a friend talking to us helps. Well, helps me at least."

"I heard Ladies White Heart and Black Heart openly laugh about Lady Neptune because of it," Cave provided with the faintest twitch of her lips. "So you also added to their entertainment." IF snorted over that while the other two grinned.

"Sounds like you have it handled until I'm out of here," Tekken noted with a mixture of relief, eagerness, and sadness. "I can't wait to get out, it's still two weeks." Two weeks of recuperation in the hospital, followed by another week of being careful to make sure.

IF could not help but sigh in understanding. "Yeah, I get that. Just a few days of wearing that cast was already so uncomfortable, I don't want to imagine what three weeks in the hospital would be like." Going by the face Tekken made, she could make an educated guess. IF's next question brought the martial artist to a befuddled stop, though: "Any preference for the drinks you want?"

5pb. chuckled quietly while Tekken simply stared at her, so the younger woman elaborated: "I told you I'd buy drinks if I jinxed us, and I did. I jinxed us so hard that I feel a single drink isn't cutting it. So we're having a little gathering back at the Basilicom once you're back on your feet. Anything in particular you want, so one of them can order it."

She pointed toward the other two Leanboxians as she said it, her mock annoyance leading to another chuckle from 5pb. while Cave's lips twitched. Tekken needed a moment longer to remember that IF was still too young to order alcohol on her own. Then she joined the laughter, her soft voice mixing with the songstress.

Once she calmed down, she offered them all a smile. "Nothing in particular, just keep me a bottle of whatever you're having. Oh, and it's nice that you want to wait, but you don't need to. Go have fun." When IF and 5pb. made to protest, her smile turned more mischievous. "We can all drink together once I am out of here."

Understanding what she meant, the other leanboxians began to grin while IF shook her head in exasperation. "Can't really argue with you. Not like I'm lacking for money." Rather the opposite, really; being a Maker and having few other expenses meant that her bank account kept accumulating money.

Granted, she did not get paid four-digit amounts for every large monster she killed because she did so on the job, but a dangerous position such as hers received a hefty bonus on top of her already generous salary. The CPUs looked after their champions quite carefully; not that IF ever thought of the matter that such measures were also taken to keep the Makers' minds off of financial trouble and focussed on their tasks.

"Quite so," Tekken agreed with her cheerfully. "I am looking forward to hear what went on, so have fun. You earned it."

"So did you," IF deadpanned. However, Tekken merely grimaced and sighed.

"Not really, no." She quietly pushed a strand of grey hair out of her face, then cast another glance at IF. "I just got hit and was out. You actually kept this thing occupied until the Ladies showed up. If I had actually paid attention, I would have noticed it. But I didn't, so now I am here and you aren't."

The younger woman's eyes narrowed as Tekken spoke, though IF did not get a response out before a delicate hand flicked Tekken's forehead, to a surprised "eep".

Cave pulled back her hand and calmly looked it over, eyes firmly averted from her fellow Maker. "You are being fretful again. I told you before there is no need. Even if you made a mistake, this still prevented any of us from getting injured... overly much," she added with a glance to IF, who shrugged. Then she moved to flick Tekken's forehead again, but the other woman quickly reatreated as far as the various cables connected to her allowed.

Another smack rang out, another squeak followed, and Cave returned to leaning at the wall. "Any of the CPUs would tell you that you should learn from your mistakes, not wallow in them. You were careless, so do not be careless again. Nobody blames you except yourself, so take the forced bedrest as your punishment and move on."

IF could not help but blink at Cave. She had no idea how anyone could deliver a pep talk while sounding as close to emotionless as a human being could.

Tekken, however, ended up smiling again. "I guess you're right. Thank you." She softly shook her head and made herself comfortable again. "But really, you three should enjoy yourselves. IF might not even be here anymore when I get out."

She had a point there, which the others conceded silently. IF still wondered whether she would end up regretting her decision.