This took and ended up longer than expected, but anywhoozle, it's here and just in time for the end of the year~
Jacky was sitting at a table in the waiting room, a deck of playing cards spread out in front of him, twelve piles of four cards arranged in a clockwise fashion, a thirteenth pile in the center. It was going to take at least an hour, so he figured he might as well entertain himself in a way that didn't require precise dexterity.
He flipped a card over and put it in the proper place, and continued this action over and over until he glanced up and internally groaned.
"Can't you just give me one day off, I swear, this is most definitely harassment." Jacky slammed a card down on a pile, glaring at Darkwing with every once of annoyance he could possibly muster. "... I suppose I should be thankful that you haven't used that smoke trick to announce yourself, that probably would have set off the fire sprinklers again."
"So, about that tape."
"Unbelievable, you are still going at it after what happened, you can't let any of us decompress, just let us take a break, will ya?"
"Actually, I was going to ask if there was anything else got jarred in your brain from it."
"No." Jacky said stiffly, keeping his gaze locked on the table, not bothering to look up. "That was all, I already said that."
"Because anything could be helpful in-"
"Would you like me to go into great detail about how I was screaming and crying while holding onto a ladder over a dumpster in an alley? Because if that's what you're looking for, I can help with that, it's about the only thing I know." Jacky said sarcastically before realizing Darkwing was carrying what looked to be a shoebox. "Oh my goodness, if that's another tape, I swear to-"
"It's not, but I was wondering if this could be helpful in any way." Darkwing said, putting the box on the table.
"Yeah, just put that on my solitaire game, whatever man, it wasn't like I was doing something there already." Jacky grumbled before lifting the lid of the box, then slapping it shut. "Where did you get this?"
"It was among all the other things I've confiscated over the years from your escapades." Darkwing said, pulling the item out of the box. It was a familiar looking handheld hypnosis device that Jacky knew the effects it had all too well. "I thought maybe it could be useful."
"It's garbage, absolute garbage, a failed project, it has no business being here."
"I figured since it could be used to-"
"I know very well what it does, Darkwing, I built the blasted thing, remember?" Jacky snapped, knocking the empty box off the table and resuming his card game. "I'm not interested; it's a very unstable piece of equipment, and there's really no way to have any control as to what exactly it does. You can't use it to isolate memories in the brain; it could very well dig up what should remain buried. It's absolutely unstable and unreliable. If anything, it's more likely to scramble a brain that it is to help it."
"I do remember you reacting to it in terror that one-"
Jacky made a furious motion to snatch the device out of Darkwing's hands, but his own hand had been planted on the spread of cards on the table, so he slipped a little and landed sideways on the playing surface as several cards hit the floor. Jacky cursed under his breath and said loudly: "There's a one in thirteen chance of winning this game, and now it's all mucked up, so I'll never know if it was a winnable one!"
"Okay, what exactly was this thing designed for, because that was not a normal reaction."
"It's none of your business, it's mine, now give it back so I can throw it at the wall and smash it like I should have a long time ago."
"And now I'm not sure if I should even give this back until I get some answers."
There was a pause before Jacky snorted a laugh of disbelief.
"Oh, how very ironic. You want answers? I wonder what that must feel like?" He spat back sarcastically.
"Okay, you've made your point." Darkwing said over him, setting the device on the table in front of him. "Fine, do what you want with it. Maybe I just happen to have the schematics to rebuild it so we can try this again when you're less hostile."
"... You're bluffing."
"Maybe. Maybe not. You can't know that for sure, can you?"
"No, no I can't, I can't be sure of anything at all, can I? That's why I'm here." Jacky said with a tinge of ire to his tone. "You know that. You were there when-!"
Suddenly, Jacky's eyes lit up as a thought crossed his mind, and a small grin spread across his face, a great contrast against the sour look he'd been wearing since the start of this encounter.
"... What?" Darkwing hadn't expected that.
"So, what happened on that video clip that Claire didn't let us finish seeing?"
"I can't compromise-"
"You can't very much compromise a memory that would never exist to begin with. I'm clearly unconscious there, there is no way I would have been awake at all. I found a loophole, Darkwing. You can tell me about it, it's not against the rules."
"... Well, I'll be, you're absolutely right."
Jacky was still beaming at his cleverness.
"So, you going to tell me what happened then?"
"If you think that can get you answers about what happened before you ended up out of a window, you're out of luck. This loophole will only apply to after you've hit the ground."
"Aw, darn, well then, just tell me about that, then."
"... You want me… to explain what exactly?"
"What happened after I fell."
"What else is there to say? You know the details; you had to be taken here because you got hurt. I brought you here."
"Yeah, but how?" Jacky persisted. "I mean, come on, I know that I'm kind of bigger than you, how did you manage to move me? Who else helped? How did-"
"You were injured, I dragged you to the Thunderquack, and you bled all over the backseat because you smashed your head into the pavement. Does that answer your question?"
"... A bit blunt, if you ask me. You're mean."
"What did you expect? That's all there is to it." Darkwing said flatly. "You could have died. And that's not just me embellishing it or being overly dramatic; if you landed any differently or fell just a little bit further of a distance, we wouldn't have had a trip to the hospital to worry about."
Jacky blinked with an expression not unlike a deer caught in the headlights.
"... Why are you saying that like it's my fault..?" He mumbled, sliding back in his chair and pushing his fingers into his head feathers to instinctively grab a handful in a lightly held fist. "I mean, I know that I caused all that, but you have to remember that I don't remember that. You could be a little more considerate..."
"..." There was a pause from Darkwing before he heaved a sigh through his teeth. "You're right, it doesn't do us any good to say that, if your memory is shot like this."
"... I mean, it's not like I haven't been trying or anything, I'm just as shocked as everyone else that I even remembered that bit of what the tape showed. I don't know anything else before or after it, just that Claire was there." Jacky was moving the hand on his head in a slight rubbing motion and added while squinting: "Ugh, just trying to make any sense of it is giving me a bit of a headache…"
"..."
"Not every headache of mine is because of the brain damage, Darkwing. I can have stress headaches, you know? Every head pain is not always a cause for alarm. Did you read the packet? I haven't, but that's what Claire told you." Jacky said, scooping up the playing cards on the table and piling them into a stack in his hands. "You play cards? I got cards. Since you look like you're going to stay here for a bit, might as well play cards."
"... Cards?"
"Yes, cards, it's the stiff pieces of waxed paper with numbers and/or pictures written on them, they're a very popular plaything of all ages and have been for centuries."
"I know what cards are! I'm just wondering why you're asking me to-" Darkwing snapped back, sounding a little offended at the statement, before being interrupted.
"Well, I mean, since it's going to be difficult to play solitaire with you hovering over me, you might as well join me. It keeps my hands busy, at least. It's a nice activity." Jacky was awkwardly shuffling the cards, but kept his face straight. "Howzabout we play 'Cheat'? It goes by other names, but I feel more comfortable with this name, there's a children's waiting room around the corner, and I don't want things to get too heated and we get some complaints."
His eyes held that same tired look they always seemed to have, but he managed to crack a strained smile the longer he stared at Darkwing.
"Alright, if that's going to keep things calm over here, I'll bite." Darkwing said, shrugging and taking a seat on the opposite side of the table. "Speaking of which, um… how… How are things since..?"
"What, you mean the other day, when everything went completely off the rails when you brought that tape in?" Jacky sorted the cards into two even piles and slid one of them across the table. "What was even the point of that tape? Why did you choose those bits in particular? You know that you can't just jar my memory; it won't work that way."
"You need to have an idea about what might be discussed in the future, at the very least, you-"
"I really don't think anyone should decide what I need and don't need, pertaining to that, other than myself." Jacky picked up the pile closest to him and gestured for Darkwing to do the same with his. "Of course, I suppose that doesn't matter much when I have a brain injury and can't navigate the floor the moment I step away from a map. My brain isn't exactly as good as it used to be, and it just loves to remind me that at the worst possible times. We'll play single card rules, it lasts longer and it'll be a little more challenging to keep up with. Helps to work my mind." He set a card on the table face down. "Seven."
"Regardless of what you think, you need to remember that we're still not in the clear. There's a very real chance that you may very well go back to prison as soon as you're cleared here."
"I know that. You think I haven't been fretting over that for the past few months? For goodness sake, I've almost made myself sick over the thought of it. Play your card, Darkwing."
"I-"
"Play your card. It's your turn."
"Eight." Darkwing said through gritted teeth as he put the card down. "Now, if you'd just-"
"Nine." Jacky slapped his card down, not even letting Darkwing get a word in.
At this point, the Duck Knight very much thought that Jacky was doing this deliberately, which was strengthened by the fact that the forcibly retired toy maker was staring at him with a sort of challenging grin, as if daring him to say something about it.
Of course. He should have seen this coming. Darkwing had very easily walked right into a little trap, and now he was going to have to play it out, lest they cause another scene. Jacky definitely knew what he was doing; he had Darkwing as a captive player now.
That madman.
"Fine. Ten. You really ne-"
"JACK!" Jacky shouted, bringing his hand down on the table with the card swiftly, before bursting into a fit of the giggles. He inhaled sharply and said between snickers: "G-get it? *snerk* It's my name, I beat you to saying it, it's funny!"
Darkwing blinked, and looked as though he was seriously considering causing a scene anyway just to get out of this game.
"... Did you set all this up just for that?" He said dryly as Jacky managed to catch his breath as the giggling subsided.
"No, but I saw an opportunity and took it." Jacky wheezed, and thumped his hand on the table in tandem. He grinned and stuck his tongue through his teeth. "Your turn, Darkwing."
"... Alright, it's not that funny. Queen." Darkwing rolled his eyes as he set a card down. "I really think-"
"Cheat."
"... Pardon?"
"Cheat. The card you put down wasn't a queen at all."
"Well, of course, you've got all the queen cards! What did you expect!"
"Pick up the card pile, Darkwing."
Darkwing threw the deck in his hands down on the table in frustration.
"This is a completely pointless game when there are only two players! Why on earth would you-!"
"Pick up the cards, Darkwing."
There was something a little odd about Jacky keeping a level tone despite having just been yelled at. Darkwing wasn't quite sure if he was getting angry with him, or just plain done.
He lifted the top card on the pile to show what he'd put down, before adding the pile to his own.
"Fine. Happy now?"
"Look, just because you'd rather be playing video games doesn't mean you can be short with me."
"And what does that have to do with anything!"
"... Is this room tilting, or is that just me?"
"... Excuse me, what?"
"You got cotton in your ears or something? I asked if the room is tilting, or does it just feel like that to me?" Jacky reiterated, looking somewhat disoriented compared to how he had been mere minutes before.
"... I'm pretty sure that's not happening at all..?"
"Darkwing, I'm serious, the room feels like it's moving a little. Like it's on a boat. I don't like when it does that to me."
There was a moment of hesitation before he finally said, perhaps a bit louder than intended: "Are you saying that you've got vertigo?"
"No, I'm saying the room feels like it's moving!" Jacky shouted back, sounding frustrated at this point, looking very tense at this sudden change in environment.
"That's exactly what vertigo is, you-!" Darkwing started to snap back before he caught himself. "Do you need me to get someone?"
"I don't know! Just shut up for a second!" Jacky snapped irritably, sinking back in his seat with his hands over his eyes, shivering slightly as he set his head on the table, running his fingers through his head feathers feverishly. "Th-the room is moving, and I want it to stop now." He groaned uncomfortably.
"I can't do anything about that specifically, but I can go get someone who can help." It was starting to occur to Darkwing that this wasn't one of Jacky's antagonistic episodes, but rather he was starting to experience a physical reaction to whatever had been bothering him prior to this. This distress wasn't Darkwing's doing; Jacky had been on edge before he had even stepped in that waiting room with the box in hand. "Jacky, I'm going to get someone. Are you alright with me leaving you alone for a bit?"
"... I want Claire…" Jacky's fingers dug into the fluffy down on his head, his voice hoarse and low, as if he was putting all his willpower into trying to rein in his emotions. He inhaled sharply, hunching his shoulders, and moaned pitifully: "... I don't know what's wrong with me… my brain is spinning, everything is spinning, but we're not moving, but everything is moving, it's spinning and I don't like it, I don't like it, I want Claire…"
"I'm not sure how to fix that for you, but I'll be right back. Would it help to get your focus if you try sorting those cards?"
Jacky lifted a hand from his head to be able to look at him with glassy, watery eyes.
"... Hunh..?" Was a noise he made as if trying to form a question, but was unable to find the right words to enunciate it properly.
Yep, Jacky was definitely not playing this for theatrics. There was a very clear presentation of declining cognitive function at the moment, which in itself was alarming to witness.
In all honesty, it was probably fortunate that Darkwing had approached him to begin with, as this could very well have been far more distressing to the broken toy maker if this sort of episode had struck him while he'd been alone.
"I said that I am going to be right back." Darkwing adopted a softer tone, picking up the card piles and setting them in Jacky's line of sight. "Try and put these in some order, whatever order you want, just to keep your mind on something else until-"
Darkwing had been getting ready to step away, until Jacky's hand shot out and grabbed the hem of his cape in a tightly gripped fist. Jacky was staring ahead distantly, and Darkwing had to wonder if he was even aware of what he was doing.
"QuackerJack, let go of my cape."
No response.
"Jacky, you need to let go of my cape, I can't leave if you don't." Darkwing tried to pry him loose, but was somewhat astounded to find that Jacky's grip was relatively strong considering that he wasn't even cognitively acknowledging Darkwing at this time.
Darkwing really couldn't be too frustrated with him at the moment, for all he knew, Jacky had lapsed into a completely different state of mind, and darn if Darkwing wasn't going to risk getting suckerpunched in the face again if he lashed out.
Absolutely fan-freaking-tastic.
At that moment, the door to the corridor that led to the back rooms clicked and was pushed open, and Darkwing braced himself for the inevitable set of questions that were going to ensue.
"Before anyone gets on my case here, I think I should point out that he's having an episode or something like that right now, and absolutely no one is around for this sort of thing, so if anything, I think it's probably a good thing I'm even here at all, and it's probably back design to not at least have a receptionist within eyesight, but anyway..." Darkwing started, still trying to tug his cape free as a dumbstruck Claire rushed to the table to assist. "I don't know what's going on with him, but he's been saying that the room feels like it's moving, and I can't get a straight answer out of him. He's just grabbed my cape not even a minute ago, I don't even think he's 'here' right now."
Jacky mumbled something that sounded like he was talking about "fog on the brain", and his hand that wasn't gripping the cape was digging into his head feathers, specifically on the side of his head where he'd been injured months before. It really didn't take much to figure out what was happening after the pieces clicked into place.
"... It's a migraine. He must be having a migraine." Claire said, reaching for Jacky's hand that was still gripping the cape. "I was afraid this was going to happen eventually, but he's been having these little headaches lately, we've been very careful but I've been worried that he was going to be having one of these sooner or later."
"... Head feels like a too ripe melon, I don't like this, I got stuff I wanted to do…" Jacky whimpered, eyes squeezed shut. "... I was fine earlier…"
"We'll take you to your room, Jacky. Just let go of Darkwing's cape and-"
"I have an appointment with Ms. Mustela next… I really shouldn't miss it…" Jacky added, sounding that it was a chore to stay coherent in thought at the moment. "... How was your session..? Good..? Ugh..."
"Jacky, if you aren't feeling up to it, I'll be more than happy to reschedule it for a day that's better for you." Ms. Mustela said sympathetically.
Jacky made a half-hearted noise of protest, but eventually relented, finally letting go of the cape (but not without absent-mindedly wiping his face with it), which now seemed to have gained a crease from the grip he'd had on it, as Darkwing had quietly noted to himself.
"... Are all the cards still there..? I had a full deck of cards." Jacky lifted his head and looked at the table wearily, reaching for the piles. "... Fifty-two, there's supposed to be fifty-two cards, not counting the jokers…"
He was honestly mildly impressed with himself for managing to make it to his room without fainting or throwing up from the dizzying sensation in his brain, but of course, it was only one flight of stairs he had to traverse with some help. In any case, in his muddled state of mind, he was pleased with himself for not messing up that simple task.
Small steps.
His bed was far more comfortable to him than usual, but he suspected that was because of how drained that awful dreadful headache had left him. Jacky would rather deal with a daylong headache of the dull variety than this sudden sharp pain in his skull, at least he could form a coherent thought during the dull ones. He wondered what could have possibly triggered that sudden migraine, especially when he couldn't recall having had a headache so severe since perhaps when he first arrived at the hospital.
After having a check on his vitals and all that by a nurse (and boy, did he dislike the light being shone in his eyes), just to be certain that the headache wasn't a forewarning of something more severe on the horizon, he was finally given a moment's peace and he took this as an opportunity to try to sleep off the muddled state the migraine had left his achy brain in. A mild analgesic was handed to him in a small shallow cup, and, quite surprisingly to him, a cup of warmed reddish liquid he immediately recognized as black tea, which he recalled was quite a caffeinated variety.
When questioning about the oddity, he was told that the caffeine would help with the analgesic pill's effectiveness in managing the pain in his head. Confusing to him, as he'd been told for some time now that he was supposed to have his caffeine intake monitored, and it baffled him that he was told that caffeine would worsen his headaches from the injury, but here they were, handing him a cup of the stuff. The least they could do is give him a proper soda so he could enjoy the fizz tickling his tongue.
He didn't even bother to make a snarky comment directed towards Darkwing, though he certainly felt that the bout of head pain had been brought on by the Duck Knight to begin with; he'd address that later, if he'd remember to do so.
He wasn't sure how long he managed to drift off before an unwelcome familiar voice slipped into his ear with as much comfort as a slimy worm slipping in.
"... Don't even bother, I'm not interested right now…" Jacky mumbled, pressing his face into the pillow even more. "... I'm tired…"
You're always tired.
"... It's something that comes with a brain injury and the fact that I can't seem to get a moment's peace in my own head."
Why do you always act like I'm such a bad thing?
Jacky pulled one end of the pillow up to fold it over his other ear, as if trying to block out sensory feedback.
I'd say that that really doesn't do much, but I feel like I'm just talking to a lame duck right now.
Jacky inhaled sharply, and if that voice had a tangible form, he would have likely lunged at it without hesitation. His patience was already thin enough.
"... Please, just let me rest."
I can't help it. There's too much going on. It's enough to melt your brain, really.
"Then keep it to yourself."
Technically, I am.
"Clever banter. Now, go away for now, I'm not in the mood. My head hurts, and my ears are ringing." Jacky huffed in a disgruntled tone, curling up on the bed.
You know I can't exactly leave. Besides, I'm really not doing anything right now.
"Keep it that way…" Jacky said under his breath as the door latch clicked behind him and he heard the sound of someone entering the room carefully.
He lifted his head slightly to glance over his shoulder and felt an immense sense of relief when it wasn't Darkwing this time.
"... Hi, Claire…" His tired face lit up despite the buzzing discomfort in his head, and he made the motion to roll over to look at her properly, but she gestured to him that she was going to walk over to the other side of the bed instead.
"Feeling any better?" She asked, carefully scooting the visitor chair closer, trying to not let it scrape against the tile and worsen Jacky's headache.
"... I don't know if it's starting to go away or if I'm just getting used to it, but at least I can think a little better." Jacky said truthfully, failing to stifle a yawn. "Oof, that headache really wiped me out…"
"Any idea what could have triggered it? So we can try to avoid it."
"I don't know… Darkwing and I were doing a card game, and it was actually a little fun, but now I have a headache, and I'm just tired and want to sleep it off."
"Do you need anything else, Jacky?"
"Mmfine, thanks." Jacky said through another yawn. "... How was your thing with Ms. Mustela? Did it help any? Did you get another thing set up?"
"It was nice. Can't say much about it, you know, because of secrecy reasons, but yes, I have another appointment scheduled." Claire said before Jacky erupted in a fit of giggles.
"Oooh, secrets, secrets are fun…" He clapped his hands with feverish excitement. It was clear that the exhaustion and headache was gaining dominance over his cognition, but he still found amusement in an otherwise mundane statement. He giggled again, tongue pressed against his teeth, fingers wrapping around his head feathers as he pushed himself up in a sitting position, fidgeting with excitement. "... I got one, I got one."
"Jacky, maybe you can do that later, you're tired and I know how you get when you're not feeling well." Claire said, reaching for his hand to pry it from his feathers, but his grip shifted and squeezed her hand with fingers interwoven between hers. She couldn't help but snort at the gesture. "... Alright. Okay. I see what's happening here, you silly man."
"... My head hurts but I got a seeeecret too." He chimed back with tired, but impish enthusiasm.
"Okay, Jacky, but maybe you should wait until you're feeling better before we talk about that." Claire had to laugh a little at how he was still managing to be playful as ever in spite of being somewhat inebriated from his numbing head pain. She was going to assume that he was barely going to remember the giggle fit anyway, once the migraine and medicine wore off completely.
"... My head hurts."
"I know, Jacky. Do you need anything, does it feel like something that you need someone to check out for you?"
"... It just hurts." Jacky mumbled, frowning for the first time since she walked in the room. "... I don't like it…"
"Would it help if I turn the lights down, or close the blinds?"
"... I don't know, it just hurts… like my whole brain is on fire or something…"
"That's just a migraine you're feeling, it's going to probably hurt all afternoon." Claire said, pushing him back into the bed, hoping that he'd understand that she was just trying to get him to rest. "Now that I think about it, you did say something about feeling ill yesterday. That could have had something to do with this."
"... I don't get it."
"Sometimes migraines have warning symptoms in advance, and that would explain some of how you've been feeling for the past few days."
"That's vague. No way I would have figured that out ahead of time…" Jacky continued to frown, heaving a sigh while rubbing a hand across his head as he curled up on his side. "... Oh, man, I am tired. And my head hurts. Did someone get the cards? I had like fifty-two cards there, I don't want to be playing without a full deck."
"I'm sure we got all of them. Are you going to be alright?"
"I think I just have to sleep it off. I've never really had this happen before, so I'm not really sure."
Jacky pulled the blanket over his shoulder as if trying to ward off a chill.
"Is there anything you want me to-?" Claire started to ask before spoke over her in a tired but soft voice.
"You've done a lot already; I definitely feel more grounded than I did an hour ago." He said, smiling weakly and giving a pained sort of giggle. "But this was supposed to be a 'you day', and I'm sorry it's not now. Tuesday was supposed to be You's Day. I suppose we could just make Thursday a Claire's Day, but that doesn't quite have the same ring to it, and now it's just ruined because I just had to get a migraine…" He added with a faint hint of a whine.
Honestly, he sounded more upset that there was a snag in the whole plan than the actual snag itself.
"Migraines happen without much warning, there's really nothing that could have been done otherwise, so I guess we'll just have to reschedule."
"But-But the whole point of You's Day is that it was supposed to be a you day!" Jacky lamented quite loudly, throwing his hands in the air, which looked a bit comical in his supine position. "And now it's ruined! It's ruined!"
"It's not ruined, Jacky, and you really shouldn't be thinking that you had anything to do with it if it was." Claire tried to reassure him, but she knew at this point that he was already convinced that it was the contrary. The best thing to do was just talk with him until he settled down. "I know you're upset about it, especially because you're in pain, but I'm not disappointed, really."
"Today was supposed to be a nice day!" Jacky continued to groan. There was a pause before he inhaled sharply with the audible gasp of someone who just realized they may have forgotten something. "Where's Mr. Banana Brain? I don't have him!" He quickly pushed a hand under the pillow, and said a little more loudly (wincing at his own volume): "I can't find him!"
"Okay, Jacky, just calm down, I'm sure we'll find him." Claire said, instinctively putting a hand on his chest to prevent him from getting up as quickly as he looked like he was about to, which certainly wasn't going to mix well with a disorienting headache. "He probably got set down in the room and you forgot to put him back where you keep him."
"Well, how are we gonna find that out, Claire? He's mute now, he can't tell us anything, we can't hear him!" Jacky said hoarsely, visibly having difficulty fighting back another fit of tears. His mind was clearly beginning to drift elsewhere in his muddled and distraught state, and he didn't seem to recognize that she'd pushed him back into the bed for a reason, as he tried at least three more times to sit up. "I can't just lose him again! I can't do that, Claire, I'm not losing him again!"
"Jacky, I understand that you are upset, but if you direct your attention to the space between the bedside table and bed, you might find him wedged between there, as he seems to be at this very moment."
There was a pause, perhaps about half a minute, before Jacky made such a ridiculous display of actions (such as arm failing and nearly getting tangled in the blankets) that was just so unnecessary for the movement of rolling on his side to check the aforementioned area. Sure enough, there was the doll.
Within seconds, he had Mr. Banana Brain freed and clutched the doll to his chest in a protective hold, wheezing under his breath, eyes squeezed shut, shaking, curling into a ball on his side…
He wasn't sure how much time had passed, or if any had at all, but he did feel hands on his shoulder and back, which seemed to pull him back to reality. He blinked and lifted his head, looking at Claire with bleary eyes, exhaustion swimming in his brain, which seemed to be waging a war on his conscious mind. His arms were still wrapped tightly around the doll.
"You should be resting, Jacky, you-"
"B-but-!"
"Jacky, you need to rest. I'll be back, I promise."
"But, it's supposed to be You's Day!"
"I know, but we'll just do that another day."
"That's not the point, it was supposed to be a day off for you, and I ruined it!"
It was clear that it was going to be difficult to make any headway in this discussion when he was as distressed as he was. It was like running in circles.
"I'll be back tomorrow, you need to rest, Jacky." She said again, not giving him a chance to interject this time. "Tomorrow is another day, and it can be a better day."
"... I'm getting tired of being so broken all the time." Jacky said quietly, pressing his face into the pillow to hide it. "... I can't even sit in a waiting room without messing that up too…"
"Jacky, you have a migraine, you couldn't possibly have done anything to prevent it, we don't even know what triggered it, it's not your fault."
"... I wish we could say the same about this whole thing. My head hurts…"
"Try to sleep it off, that's about the only thing you can do now, since you already had something to help manage the pain."
"... That sounds nice." Jacky mumbled, smiling weakly despite his discomfort. "... I'm honestly impressed that I haven't thrown up yet, even though it feels like I'm on a shaky boat, being beaten in the head with an oar."
"I think we probably took care of that before that really became a problem. I'll see you later, Jacky, you get better soon, okay?" Claire said.
"... Hey, wait, there's a bag there that you didn't pick up."
"Oh, that's for you, I was going to give it to you later today, but since we've gotten a bit of a detour, you can have it now." Claire explained while reaching for the large paper bag and moving it to set it within his reach, which he touched his fingers against the edge of the bag to grip it and drag it towards him. "It's nothing special, just something for when the weather gets colder."
"Oh, this is nice, I don't have something like this to wear around here. Actually, now I do. This is nice. Thank you." Jacky chirped, trying to look pleased despite the head pain. "I shouldn't be thinking bad thoughts, it brings around the… nevermind…"
He genuinely enjoyed the idea of having something to put over the very basic hospital garb he'd been using so far, since the hospital itself was kept at a temperature just slightly above "somewhat cold", and his feathers were simply not downy enough to properly insulate him (not that he could recall the last time they did). A hooded sweatshirt, dark blue, was all it was, but the loose fitting nature and something to pull over his head, with grab-able drawstrings to wrap his fingers around, puffy sleeves, it felt… familiar? Comforting? It felt… nice. He liked nice.
It goes without saying that he most certainly had it on when she left, and it should be known that he continued to wear it happily through the night.
Claire went home, and for the first time since the day of Jacky's accident, she booted her computer and loaded World of Whifflecraft.
"So, what's the catch here?" Jacky said, kicking his feet idly over the edge of the bed where he sat.
"No catch, you get to spend the weekend out of the hospital. Plain and simple."
"And I'll bet you have to follow me around the whole time, don't you, Darkwing?"
"Not the whole time, no."
"... You're messing with me."
"No, honest."
"... I don't believe you." Jacky said in a level tone, narrowing his eyes. "There's no way I'd be allowed to do anything outside of this hospital without you dogging me."
"I would have guessed you'd be more excited about the idea."
"I'm skeptical." Jacky muttered, fidgeting uncomfortably. "... The whole weekend?"
"Well, technically it's two whole days time wise, but yes." Darkwing said. "You're allowed to spend a weekend out of the hospital."
"... Why?" Jacky was clearly having difficulty grasping the idea, as if he expected it to be a mean joke. "... I thought… Aren't I supposed to be..?" He tried to ask, but it just came out as noises of questioning. He looked helplessly at Claire, and it was clear that he genuinely did not understand what he was being told.
"You get to spend the weekend at home, Jacky."
"... Home?"
"Yes, Jacky."
"... I get to go home?"
"For the weekend, but yes."
"... Is… Is that allowed..?" Jacky still didn't seem to fully understand. "How..? And he doesn't follow us around the whole time..?"
"Yes, Jacky, you're cleared for the weekend." Claire said, and he looked back at her as if he really didn't quite believe it.
"... The whole weekend?"
"Oh, for the love of-! Yes, QuackerJack, you get to leave for the weekend!" Darkwing snapped before he could catch himself. "This took a lot of hoop jumping to set up, the least you can do is look pleased about it! I'm trying here!"
"... Gosh, don't yell at me, Darkwing."
"... You're absolutely right, but-"
"Then don't yell at me. I just got over a migraine, it was tiring, and I'd appreciate it if you could give me a little more leniency before you go off like that again. And for the last time, if you aren't prefacing it with a 'Mister', then call me 'Jacky, not just plain 'QuackerJack', we're not doing that anymore."
There was something genuinely odd (and perhaps a bit amusing) about QuackerJack, er, Jacky, having such a calm and level tone of voice while politely telling Darkwing to, simply put: "Go soak your head."
Darkwing took a very deliberate and controlled inhale of air before continuing in an equally deliberate and controlled tone: "Let's try this again: You have been cleared for a weekend out of the hospital."
"... And what are the restrictions on this thing?"
"Well, obviously, you're not going to be leaving the city limits, because you should still be within traveling distance of the hospital, but I'd assume you'd much rather spend that time at home anyway."
There was a decent length of pause before a smile spread widely on Jacky's face.
"Oh, I'd like that." He said before the smile faded gradually as something crossed his mind, making his look apprehensive. "... How are we getting there? We're not flying, are we? I'm not looking forward to getting sick again. I just got past a migraine, I'm not looking to get ill on top of that."
"We can see how wheels works for you, it might fair better with you being closer to the ground."
"Like a bus? Public transit? Oh, lord, you're not gonna make me ride in that sidecar of his motorbike, are you, that can't possibly be safe, I've seen how he drives that thing."
"Jacky, I have a car, remember?" Claire said gently, trying to not sound patronizing so as to not upset him. "We can take the car, and we can make the ride as comfortable as possible for you."
"I haven't been in a car since… Gosh, I can't even remember when that was, it's definitely not been for as long as I've been here." Jacky scratched at his head feathers and frowned. "... When was the last time I even drove a car? I honestly don't know anymore, I know most certainly did not drive during that mandatory vacation QuackWerks made me take, so that's at least… months? A lot of months? It's weird, it's really weird to think about that."
"Well, actually, on the tapes, you did drive a-" Darkwing started before being interrupted.
"Nnnnno!" Jacky said emphatically with perhaps far too much detached chipperness to his tone of voice. "No, I do not remember that."
"So, are you going to take the weekend, or not?"
"Well, yes, of course, it'd be really nice to… well, I don't know what I want to do yet, but I'm sure that it's way better than doing whatever I decide on if I'm over here." Jacky blinked before nodding enthusiastically. "I'd very much like that. That sounds really nice."
There was a pause. A long pause, really. Quite awkward, even, you can really hear how quiet it was.
"... So… Are you going to get ready for that?"
"What exactly do I have to pack, Darkwing? Anything I'd be taking for an overnight stay can go in a bag in about two minutes, and that's probably just a pillow and Mr. Banana Brain, maybe a toothbrush, most of my stuff is already at the house, and what isn't, isn't going to be a problem leaving here for a couple of days." Jacky said earnestly, shrugging. "And you're nuts if you think I'm going to be dragging that box of tapes with me for a weekend, because I am not going to. This is supposed to be like a… a… a vacation, or something. I'll get my toothbrush, it's in the cup by the sink."
It was exciting, absolutely thrilling, to finally step foot outside of the hospital grounds and not have to immediately step into the Thunderquack for another bumpy and nauseating ride of disorienting anxiety. Jacky felt more at ease, perhaps because it was a familiar environment that he welcomed greatly, even if it was bizarre to think that it had been so long (more than he can recall) since he'd been in that very seat of the car.
He was so tempted to stick his head out the window to feel the wind rustling through his feathers, but he thought against it, as he at least remembered the last time he stuck his head out that window, it ended with him almost choking on a rogue beetle. Also, the weather was getting colder these days, and perhaps it wasn't wise to let himself get arctic blasted in the face and end up catching a cold.
"You doing good so far, Jacky?"
"Yeah, I think riding in a car is way easier on me than in the air."
True. There was a definite difference in his demeanor, and he didn't look like his essence of being was draining out of him as it usually seemed to during the aerial based travel. It looked like short trips in a car were going to be very manageable in the future.
"Probably because the ground is more stable."
"I dunno, I just know that I feel fine so far, but it probably helps that it doesn't feel like we're going to fall out of the sky at any given moment."
"Probably."
"Probably, yep."
The entire route between the hospital and home took longer on the street than it did in the air, perhaps roughly twenty minutes to half an hour total travel time, but at least Jacky wasn't a miserable shaken mess of twitchy nerves and anxiety for the trip.
The route also had to pass through the downtown district, and it was near impossible to not see the ridiculous towering monolith that was the QuackWerks building, that was in the exact middle of the city.
"... Didn't QuackWerks kinda… you know, um… stop?" Jacky said awkwardly, glancing upward out the window.
"It's under new management, total restructuring."
"Oh. Who's in charge now?"
"I don't know, I don't work there anymore."
"Ah, that's good, me neither." Jacky continued to stare out the window at the building in the distance. "... Lot of alleyways here, huh?"
"Uh-huh."
"... Are we there yet?"
The car rolled to a stop at the intersection, giving Claire enough time to look at him as the car idled. Jacky grinned at her sheepishly. Claire made a small laugh in response.
"Jacky, we haven't even gotten into the suburbs yet."
"It'll be so nice to spend some time out of that hospital and not have Darkwing tailing behind us, bugging me about those tapes."
"Yeah."
The car started to move again.
"So… what have you been up to lately, Claire? Anything interesting?"
Truth be told, the correct answer was "yes", but she knew she couldn't tell him she was not only back to playing video games regularly as of that week, but that she had been playing video games at all. She still had no idea how he'd react, even in this considerably calmer state of mind, and it was perhaps likely that even suggesting such a notion could unravel him and any progress he'd made in recovery could be ruined.
…
…
"Nothing much."
Jacky managed to make the whole twenty minute or so trip without getting sick, though admittedly he had gotten a little bit woozy near the end. At the very least, he did not end up ill from the movement of the car, and he felt that was considered a win.
Settling in was easy enough, as he didn't bring along much with him anyway. Mr. Banana Brain didn't take up much space either, obviously. Jacky couldn't help but notice that the hedges under the windows could do with a bit of watering and pruning, and that old oil stain still seemed to be in the driveway. The grass was just a little too long, as if it hadn't been mowed as often as it should be.
"... Is that birdhouse new? I don't think I remember that being there before." He said, pointing in the direction of the tree in the yard. "Is it occupied?"
"I don't know, I've seen some birds checking it out, but I'm not sure if there's actually anything living there yet." Claire said as she unlocked the front door.
"Did you make that?"
"No, that's store bought."
"You should get more; it might be nice to have colorful birds around here to watch." Jacky said, stepping through the threshold of the house after her. "Maybe a bee house, too. We need more bees."
"Bees?"
"I don't mean 'we need' as in exclusively you and me, but the collective 'we', as in this city's main agriculture stuff is a bit lacking and could use more bees so a jar of honey imported from Duckburg isn't so expensive. I mean, Duckburg is just over the bridge, too."
"Are you just trying to make small talk?"
"Yes. I'm bad at it, can you tell?"
"I like the birdhouse idea." Claire said, setting her bag on the counter. "I was also thinking of putting a bench under the tree and maybe find some nice flowers to brighten the yard up more."
"You should get some azaleas." Jacky chimed. "You could put them right over there-" He gestured out the window in the direction of the shaded part of the yard, clearly trying to visualize his suggestion. "And maybe they can be white with pink spots, or something bright, like orange."
"Azaleas?"
"Yeah. I like those. We saw them in Spoonerville, remember? That was a really nice day."
To be completely honest, Claire had almost forgotten about that little day trip they'd taken, as it had been sandwiched between Jacky's freak out at work and the day he'd snapped. It had been a pleasant day when they'd gone, and Jacky had been so calm and at ease as he looked at all the colorful blooms and breathed in the fragrant air.
"... It was, wasn't it?" She agreed, smiling. "Okay, I'll see what I can find in the garden section of the stores, maybe it'll be good to add some more color out there."
"I'd like that." Jacky smiled back, setting his stuff on the counter as well. "So, what's the plan for today?"
"I don't know, I just figured you'd appreciate not being stuck to a schedule." Claire said, reaching into her bag to pull out a notebook, which she opened to a recently written on page. "It's not much of a schedule, but I do have your recommended times jotted down for when you should take your meds and when you should probably eat, so as long as we don't forget those or miss these times, you can do what you want."
"... I honestly have no idea what to do if it's not scheduled, so this is going to be thrilling." Jacky said, leaning over to look at the page. "Hmm… got any cards? We can throw them in a hat."
"... I don't think I have the right sort of hat for that, would a bucket be fine?"
"Well, technically, yes, but I kind of wanted a hat for it." Jacky said, tapping a finger to his head in thought. "Okay, maybe we'll come back to that one later. Hmm… I don't know what to do for now, I don't think I've had this much freedom to do what I really want for a while."
"You don't have to have something to do every single second, we could just have a quiet evening tonight, and maybe think of something more exciting tomorrow it you want."
"We haven't had a quiet day to ourselves in a long time."
There was a noise in the living room. It was a soft noise, and perhaps if this had occurred in the middle of the day, it could have easily gone unheard, but no; there was a noise in the living room.
It had been a quiet noise, but most certainly a noise that was not something to ignore so easily. This was then followed by a THUMP, the sound of something cracking, and a hushed expletive followed by a mumbled grumble of discomfort.
Jacky had fallen asleep while they had been sitting on the couch watching TV, and Claire had laid a blanket over him and pushed a pillow under his head. It was a very likely chance that he was the source of the noise.
Claire slid her hand along the wall until she found the light switch and flipped it. Light flooded the living room and with it, a reflexive shout of surprise escaped its occupant.
Jacky was sitting on the floor between the couch and the coffee table, back facing her, the blanket wound around his ankle, and the side table beside the couch appeared to have been toppled. He was staring ahead of him, and didn't seem to even acknowledge that Claire was standing beside the light switch.
"Jacky?"
He didn't respond to her, but was audibly wheezing. His shoulders were tense, feathers ruffled, and his posture suggested that he was reacting in fear.
Puzzled and concerned, Claire cautiously stepped to him, pushed the coffee table aside just enough to be beside him, and looked at him a little more closely.
Eyes wide, teeth clenched, sight fixed on something that Claire didn't immediately identify. His fingers were digging into the carpet, and he looked as though he was helplessly witnessing the absolute collapse of his grip on stability in real-time.
"Jacky." Claire said in a calm voice that was slightly above speaking level.
There was a twitch, but his eyes remained fixed on whatever he was staring at. His breathing pace quickened, and a small noise escaped the back of his throat.
Blinking, Claire followed his line of sight and noticed he was staring into the kitchen. It took a while of observation before her brain finally clicked: The microwave's clock digits were red.
Jacky did not like glowing red lights, as they always brought forth a terrifying and uncomfortable memory, especially if he had seen the glow through tired eyes in the late, late hours of the night. He was very adamant that they removed as much reddish light from the house as possible, or at least tucked out of view from where he slept to minimize nighttime panic.
She'd forgotten that the microwave's digital display was red. And the glow was easily visible from the couch at the right angle.
"It's alright, Jacky, I'll get that for you, hold on." She said, quickly making her way to the kitchen and tossing a tea towel over the side of the machine to temporarily hide the problem until she could correct it properly. She stepped back to him and carefully put a hand on his back, taking care as to not startle him. "It's not here anymore, Jacky, it's alright, you're alright."
Jacky's shoulders relaxed just a little bit, and he continued to stare ahead, but with a more bleary eyed gaze. He kept wheezing, and continued to do so even as he slumped backwards heavily and stared at the ceiling.
"I'm sorry, I forgot about the microwave clock." Claire apologized, relieved that he finally looked in her direction when she spoke. "I could put tape over the numbers if you want, or I could move it somewhere else in the kitchen. I'd replace it, but that's still a perfectly good microwave and I don't think-"
"No, it's fine, it's my fault anyway…" Jacky mumbled, pressing a hand over his eyes. "... I can't believe I'm still getting terrorized by light glows…"
"You have a good reason to be upset, it's nothing to be embarrassed about. Don't be so hard on yourself."
"It's lights, it can't do anything to me, I shouldn't be so-"
"I don't know why you're trying to explain yourself when I completely understand."
Jacky lifted his hand from his face and looked at her as he raised his eyebrows slowly.
"... Because I feel like I should say something about it."
"You don't have to apologize, you didn't do anything wrong, Jacky." Claire said, giving him a few reassuring pats on the shoulder, which seemed to help loosen the tension in his frame.
"... I feel a little sick. Not like barfy-sick, more like dizzy-sick." He mumbled, sticking his tongue out with a groan of discomfort, face scrunched is nauseated disgust. "... My tummy feels dizzy."
"What about if I make some ginger tea to help you settle your stomach?"
".. That might be nice. Can I stay here until then? I think I might actually throw up if I stand right now, that whole thing with the lights really got to me, I think I'm shaking, am I shaking? I feel like I'm shaking."
"You got a little shiver thing happening, but I think it won't be around for too long. I'll get the water boiling so I can get you that tea soon."
"I'm gonna try to climb back on the couch, I like the couch better than the floor."
"You do that, Jacky, I'll get the tea started."
"I feel like I'm shaking." Jacky said again, laughing nervously, trying to uncoil the blanket wrapped around his ankle, but his fingers seemed to have difficulty doing this seemingly simple task, as if they'd suddenly gone numb. He laughed again, this time a little more desperately. "Ooooh, I am not having a good time with this thing, hoo boy, what is happening, I don't like this at all. Claire? Claire, I don't know why I'm freaking out right now. I sound calm, but my heart's in my ears."
There was a noise of something filled with water being set on something large (Claire had set the kettle on the stove).
"Do you need anything right now? I could get something else that's a little more ready than tea."
"Help me get this off my foot, I don't know how I got it so wound up, but I just can't seem to get it off."
"Let me see what I can do about that." Claire said, stepping over to him. The blanket wasn't really as wrapped around his ankle as it seemed, but telling him that wouldn't be much help right now to his rattled nerves. She tugged it off carefully and set the blanket aside. "There we go."
Jacky didn't say anything, and stared ahead, digging his fingers into the carpet. There was a reddish tinge just barely visible under his feathers, across his face, and his tense posture and folding limbs made it clear that he was rather embarrassed and uncomfortable by the whole situation. He continued to stare, inhaling controlled breaths as his eyes welled with tears, and his jaw clenched and his face scrunched up in a pained grimace.
"Oh." Claire managed before he was sobbing silently, still breathing in the same controlled manner, still gripping the carpet. "Oh! Jacky, what's-!"
Jacky threw his hands in the air, which made her stop mid-sentence.
"I don't know! I don't know, but I'm just not okay right now, and I-! I just-! Those lights, those red lights got me all twisted up and, and… and I… I just… you know?" He babbled in a feverish tone, wiping his eyes roughly with the heels of his hands. He wheezed and groaned miserably, and dug his fingers into his head feathers as if desperately trying to find something stable to hold onto. "It wasn't always this way, but I can't help it, the red light, the glow, it just, it's so, it's been so long and I still can't get a grip on it!"
Claire really had no idea what this was about specifically, as Jacky had never gone into much detail as to why red light always seemed to unnerve him. Even when asked, he either quickly changed the subject or would downright clam up and refuse to acknowledge it had been brought up at all. He simply did not want to talk about it a majority of the time, and at best, Claire understood that it wasn't necessarily the light itself, but that it seemed to trigger a particularly nasty memory or a feeling that terrified him at the thought of it.
"... Jacky, do you want to talk?"
"... You already know that I just don't like red lights. It's the red lights, I just got a little spooked, but it's over and I'm going to fine now if I can just forget about it, and we can just move on…"
"You know as well as me that that is not a healthy way to deal with anything internally." Claire said, placing her hands on his to pry them carefully from his head. "You're plucking your feathers out; it's more than just that."
"... No, I'm not, I'm… It's molting, I'm just molting."
"Do these really look like molted feathers to you?" Claire held his wrists and turned his hands over to show the feathers clenched in his fingers. "Jacky, you just pulled them out in front of me. What's got you all twisted up?"
"The same stuff as always, we talk about it every time I get like this."
"Not really, we talk about other things because you don't want to always talk about the things that's got you worked up."
"... I don't want… You really don't need to…" Jacky mumbled hesitantly before giving his head a little shake and saying in a slightly higher pitched tone of denial. "Claire, it's the red light, that's all it is, I just don't like red light, it's so… it's like… I don't like red light. Blue is nicer. Purple even. If you could pick a color, any color for light bulbs, what would you-?"
"Jacky."
"... Right. I'm… I'm doing it again, aren't I? Why don't we do something else then? I hear that one channel with the cheesy sci-fi movies is doing a-"
"Jacky."
"Is that tea almost ready? I think I might be up for it now-"
"I hadn't even turned on the stove yet, I've been in here with you instead."
Jacky tried to pull his hands away, and was mildly aware that it seemed that her grip was just slightly stronger than his efforts.
He chuckled nervously.
"Well, then, why don't we just go to the kitchen, then, and get that water boiling, then? We could do that, I just-"
"Jacky."
"Please, let me just-"
"You can't keep dodging that."
"I've been doing it for years, I can do it for as long as I can keep fighting back!" He snapped suddenly, continuing to try and pull away, and was growing increasingly frustrated that he couldn't seem to free his arms.
"Jacky, why does red light scare you so much? You've never said why, you just tell me to either get rid of it or cover them." Claire was surprisingly calm despite his outburst, or at least it seemed so; her voice was quiet compared to his.
"You don't need to… Claire, I-! I'm fine! I promise, I'm fine, why won't you leave this alone, you don't have to know, ask me anything else, I'll gladly answer that, anything else!"
"Because the last time you woke up in the middle of the night over lights, you were in tears, talking about red eyed monsters that wouldn't leave you alone."
"... When was this? I don't remember that."
"About a week into that mandatory vacation, the night before we went to Spoonerville actually. You were so upset, and you exhausted yourself from crying."
"... I really don't remember that. I… Y-you said this happened a week into that mandatory vacation?" His arms went slack with confusion.
"Well, I don't really think you'd have remembered that very well anyway, you were probably half asleep and I couldn't get a very straight answer out of you. You just kept saying that you were afraid of losing your mind again, and that you were never sleeping in the living room ever again."
"..." Jacky was mute as he racked his brain for any semblance of a memory over the incident. He had a crystal clear memory of everything up until he had snapped at QuackWerks, and it disquieting to think that he couldn't be sure of the one thing he'd been sure of before: His memory before the affected amnesiac memories. "... Claire, I don't remember any of that."
"I'm not saying that you should have, I'm just saying that I've seen you delirious from nightmares triggered by red lights." Claire said, moving her hands to his shoulders now. "You want me to go to therapy to talk things out, but you still keep some things to yourself."
"... I go to therapy too, remember?"
"Does Ms. Mustela know about the red lights?"
"No."
"Because..?"
"I haven't told her."
"You see what I'm saying here?"
"I don't have to tell her, though. She doesn't need to know either."
"She's your therapist, Jacky."
"And what I tell her is between her and me. That's how therapy works."
"So, you're just going to keep letting this red light thing hurt you?"
"It's not a problem, as long as I stay away from red light. Tonight was just a fluke, we won't make the same mistake tomorrow because we know better."
"Jacky-"
"Besides, I'm not the only one who knows. Mr. Banana Brain knows."
"... I don't think Mr. Banana Brain is qualified to-"
"And Darkwing."
"Pardon?"
"Darkwing should know too. He was there. Just like Mr. Banana Brain."
That was a bit of a loaded statement. There was a great deal of possibilities to interpret that and neither of them seemed to be logical or benign enough to leave it at that.
"... Jacky, what does that mean, exactly?"
"Darkwing was there too. At least, near the end of it. He wasn't there at the start. I don't know how long I was gone because it felt longer, but I was stuck in that box for way too long."
"... You're not really making much sense right now. Are you alright, Jacky?"
"Mr. Banana Brain was there the whole time. Except it wasn't really Mr. Banana Brain." Jacky grimaced and was shivering as if stricken with a particularly nasty chill. "... He didn't talk right. And he fed off misery, and I guess I was just well seasoned, because he knew just where to prod…"
"Jacky, you're trembling, let's get you off the floor so you can sit more comfortably." It wasn't that Claire wasn't listening to him at the moment, but she was noticing that Jacky was looking like he was about to slump backwards, and she was eyeing the coffee table as a potential falling hazard.
"... There was a huge recall years before I went totally bankrupt. I'd made a simple error in a toy design, a really stupid error that anyone could have made, I really made a mistake in one simple detail for a product, and there had been so many sold before that recall really went into effect." Jacky continued to speak, his voice was starting to sound flat as he did.
" I remember the recall; it made it to the papers." Claire tried to acknowledge that she'd heard him, but she really didn't see how that connected with the red lights. "I can't imagine how awful that must have been for you."
"... It was a simple mistake, really, I didn't account for the possibility that someone, so many someones, wouldn't read the directions written so clearly on the boxes. It wasn't my fault, I put the rules on the boxes and some people didn't follow them the right way, and I got so many letters, so many angry letters, furious at me, they said so many things, they called me a monster and a hack and how could I have been so careless?" His voice raised in pitch to a near squawk now, and his eyes held a sort of distant and empty gaze, as if something he was long tired of was beginning to creep into the edge of his sight, but he just didn't have the energy to care to glance at it directly.
At this point, Claire began to wonder if he'd simply lapsed into an altered state of mind and this particular memory of his had been fighting to get out of his brain for so long that it took its chance once he'd let his guard down, and now he couldn't stop until he had finished recounting it.
"And oh, the court summons, the court cases, the things I had to listen to, Claire, long boring trials, sitting there quietly in a suit, so many of these trials, testimonies, all of them saying what I did, what my product had done, the damages, the injuries, the death threats, Claire, it was awful, Claire, I couldn't stand it, I hated every second of it, how could so many people be so careless as to not read the instructions on the box before playing with something that you throw around!" Jacky was shouting now, balling his hands into fists and pounding them on the floor in a fit of anguish. "It wasn't my fault! I didn't hurt them! The directions were written on the box, on the paper in the box, there are rules that have to be followed if you're going to be using them the right way! I'm not a monster! There was nothing wrong with the product, they used it all wrong!"
His hands were back on his head, trying to tear his fluffy down out in rough fistfuls. Claire was quick to react and grabbed his hands at the wrists, pushing them away from his head.
"Jacky, please, stop hurting yourself!" She had given up on trying to stay calm now. White feathers snapped at the quills littered the floor around him, and he didn't seem fazed by this sight at all. A small bald patch was visible near his tear-stained cheek.
It was disturbing how calm he looked now, as if he hadn't just lost his nerve minutes prior. For the longest second, she felt a horrible sense of deja vu, of how utterly detached Jacky had been in the week preceding his breakdown at QuackWerks.
Not again. We're not doing this again.
She slid her fingers across his palms and wove them between his digits, gripping his hands, which was an action that would normally turn him into a flustered mushy mess. He didn't immediately react to the gesture and continued to stare at the floor.
"... Jacky, it's time to come back now." Claire pulled him towards her, desperate to get a reasonable response from him. "You're here right now. Wherever your mind is, it's time to come back."
His fingers twitched and slowly curled around hers, squeezing back hesitantly in a nearly robotic response. He didn't look at her, but his reaction was better than nothing. He sighed heavily, and leaned into her, still shivering.
"... Jacky, do you just want me to take you back to the hos-?"
"No." He said in a surprisingly coherent tone, which took Claire aback for a second. He squeezed her hands again, this time with more enthusiasm, as if to clarify that he hadn't drifted his thoughts again. "It's fine, I just… I want to do the whole weekend thing, I just had a bad moment, that's all." Jacky mumbled, shaking his head. "... I just had a… a nightmare, it happens, I'm back for now, really."
"What do you want to do now?" Claire was trying, she really was.
Jacky had his head resting on her shoulder, and that glassy look in his eyes was slowly dissipating.
"... I'm still up for that tea thing we didn't get to do." There was a hint of hopefulness in his tone as he looked upward at her. "... I'm sorry."
"It's not a pro-"
"Just let me be sorry." Jacky spoke over her, closing his eyes. "I want to be sorry."
There was a moment of silence, as neither of them knew what to say to that.
"... I turn on the stove, are you going to be alright by yourself for a few minutes, Jacky?"
"... I'll just go sit at the table, it's going to be a hot mug, so I probably should have a place to set it down."
Jacky looked at the analog clock on the wall as he waited for the kettle to whistle. It was half after one in the morning now. Late, it was getting late, and he was ruining a perfectly good sleeping hour for the both of them.
He frowned.
"It's going to take a few minutes before you can start sipping it, so let it set first." Claire said, setting the mug down.
A string trailed out of it with a paper tag on the side, and Jacky picked it up carefully to dunk the teabag in the water in a questionable attempt to make it steep better.
He heaved another sigh.
"... I shouldn't have said all that." He said quietly, winding the string around his finger. "... It was a long time ago, a lifetime ago…"
"But it still hurts you."
"... I tried to make myself forget it, but my brain is just a little too sharp to just forget so easy. Ironic, considering the injury now makes it to where I can't get half the details right with anything new." Jacky forced a bitter laugh through his nostrils. "The thing is, details are easy to forget, but not how it makes you feel." Jacky pinched the bridge of his beak with a scrunched expression. "When he found out that I don't much care for court-like settings and the sort of negativity I get at the thought, it was a bit much."
"... I still don't know who you mean. Did someone do something to you regarding all that?"
Jacky blinked, as if it just occurred to him that he most certainly had not actually clarified any concrete details of the events in question, and was almost embarrassed that he'd been rambling about all this in a way that did not make any sense to outside sources.
"... Oh, right, I never told you, did I?" He muttered, clenching his free hand on his beak in an uncomfortable gesture. "... I don't like red lights in the dark because it looks like his eyes." Jacky rolled his eyes upward as if avoiding eye contact, and it was very obvious that he was not looking forward to discussing this concept. "... Sometime ago, well before QuackWerks came around, I had the awful misfortune of finding a haunted jack-in-the-box during a solo caper. I didn't know what it was at the time, but I guess it was locked away for a reason. I'm not entirely sure what happened or how, but what was in it was a monster, a big Duck clown thing with big sharp teeth that ate misery, and ooh boy, I sure made that thing drool. Of course, I was too dense to realize the problem, because honestly, he was pretty funny at first. At least, while he was presenting himself as Mr. Banana Brain."
Jacky carefully lifted the mug and took a careful sip to test the temperature of the tea.
"... He used Mr. Banana Brain to get to you?" Claire said.
"He became Mr. Banana Brain. I should have known better; he was so mean, and Mr. Banana Brain isn't a meanie, but it was so much fun at first." Jacky laughed nervously, holding the mug with both hands before sipping again. "And then he trapped me in the box. I don't know how long I was gone, or if anyone even noticed or cared, but I was in there too long for my liking. It was a twisted playground in there, nothing made sense or had any logic, and the rules were so confusing. I had to wear the suit and carry a briefcase, and it was just… I didn't like it, it was like the court hearings again." Jacky sounded as though this was getting easier to talk about, as if he was finally able to push something off his chest. "... If it wasn't for Darkwing, I don't know if I'd have ever gotten out of there. That was fun, actually. Turns out that comedy makes Paddywhack weak. His name was Paddywhack, by the way, I don't think I actually said that yet. He had just about enough of our routine and kicked us out of the box. A bit anticlimactic, looking back, but we got out, and Darkwing got rid of the box." He took another sip. "... I got rid of all my jack-in-the-boxes after that, I wasn't going to do that again. It took a week of scrubbing Mr. Banana Brain until I felt like he was clean enough."
He took a larger sip, now that the temperature of the cup was more comfortable.
"..." Claire said nothing and also took a sip from her mug.
"I know that sounds crazy, but you can ask Darkwing, he was there too. He was skeptical while it was actively happening." Jacky sensed that his story came off as a bit embellished. "It's kind of our shared secret; I don't think anyone else knows it happened, because it wasn't really grand scale or citywide. It didn't make the papers, mostly because we both sort of agreed to not acknowledge it. I really didn't want Ne-!" He audibly choked on the word, looking a bit pained as if the name had carried barbs on the way out of his mouth, and had lodged itself firmly in his trachea. He swallowed and tried again in a small voice, shoulders tense. "I didn't want my boss at the time to know I'd worked with Darkwing Duck on something; he would have been furious, and I wasn't looking to be reprimanded after all that."
He took a much larger gulp this time, perhaps more than he should have, and coughed, eyes watering from the uncomfortable endeavor.
"... So, you were abducted by a monster."
"You really have no idea the scope of insanity that exists in this city in the Heroes Versus Villains world." Jacky shrugged, eyes locked on his mug. "St. Canard is probably the worst city in Calisota. We have a radioactive deposit in the sewers, there's alligators, transdimensional portals, alien invasions, and an unusual amount of mutants, at the very least. A monster clown isn't that unusual when you think about it. Besides, I was crazier back then, I admit, I wouldn't have known it was a problem to begin with. Hindsight's twenty-twenty, and I got rose colored glasses on anyway."
He sighed again and mumbled something to the effect of "feeling better now that's all been said".
His mug was empty now. Claire watched him drum his fingers on the table in an absent minded fidget. He looked up when he realizes he was being watched.
"... Hmm?"
"Jacky…" Claire said, setting her mug down. "No more secrets, okay?"
"... Okaaay." Jacky was a little confused as to what prompted the statement. "... I don't really keep too much from you anyway, I'm terrible at keeping my mouth shut."
"You let go of something very big tonight, and I think I should do that too."
Jacky was a little concerned now.
"... Claire, what exactly-"
"But, before I do, I want you to know that this was never meant to harm you, or in spite of you. You have to promise me that you're going to try to understand, and not jump to any conclusions."
"... You're scaring me, Claire." Jacky said, watching her stand up from her chair and leave the room, only to return to the kitchen with what looked like a jewel case in her hands. "... I don't like th-"
She set the item on the table and he stopped speaking, going visibly pale.
It was a game disc. A video game disc. A Whiffle Boy video game disc.
"... I know how you feel about these, but I promise you that this was before we even met."
"... Claire, that's a video game."
"Yes."
"... B-but you don't-! I've never even seen you-" Jacky sputtered, picking up the jewel case, opening it as if not initially believing that a disc was even in it, sliding out the pamphlet and helplessly reading her handwriting on several of the pages, seeming to be notes and passkey codes. "Claire, you're not a gamer! I would have known!"
"I'll be honest, I haven't been playing as often in recent months, but I've been trying to tell you for a long time now." Claire said. "Games are not all as bad as you think they are; there's actually some that could be helpful in your recovery. It's not all mindless."
Jacky was somewhat numb. He half considered taking the disc in his own hands and snapping it in two, just shove the pieces down the garbage disposal and free her from the wretched spell of mindrot, but a nagging little voice in the back of his mind reminded him that this disc belonged to Claire, and it was a very petty and cruel gesture to destroy something of hers, especially after she'd taken it upon herself to come clean about it. Admittedly, this wasn't the worst thing he could have been told, he had to begrudgingly admit that it was impressive how she'd kept it so secretive for so long.
Gosh, the amount of stress that had to be on her, trying to keep any and all signs of it out of the house; she'd kept it out of sight just to placate him. He was honestly being a bit of a brat to not consider her side of the ordeal, and she'd been doing so much for him to begin with…
He still hated video games, of course. They mocked him with their success in the entertainment industry, and now they'd infiltrated his most intimate of relations. What chance could a fool have against some pompous hero, after all..?
Jacky waved his hands in the air as if to swat away such thoughts and shoved the jewel case across the table with a discontented groan.
"... Alright. Alright. Okay." He grunted finally. "... You were honest, and I can't be mad at you for that. I'm trying to be good, after all, and this is just one of those things that I was probably going to go through anyway, even though I don't like it…"
"I really tried to say something before, but you'd always dismiss the idea before I got far, or you were already upset about something else."
"... Just to be clear… You're not one of those obsessive gamers that think about the game all the time, even when away from it, are you?"
"It's just something I do when there's nothing else. You're taking this better than I thought you would."
There was another pause before Jacky's eyes went wide and he snatched up the disc again to read the title more clearly.
World of Whifflecraft
Oh, dear.
"... Cuh-Claire…" He stammered, turning the box over. "... Th-this isn't the s-s-same game as the..?"
"It is."
Jacky still didn't know much about what happened during his missing chunk of memory, but he was very much aware of what had been documented in the news media about what he'd done at Whiffle Boy Entertainment, and the audio recording of his rant to the hostages about what he'd planned to do while there. It had been one of the main points that the news media had been very thorough in describing to the utmost detail.
Oh, sherbert.
"... I cuh-could have…"
"I wasn't on the game at the time, I was too busy trying to find a way to reach out to you."
"I'm s-so sorry, I-I had, I had no idea, I-I didn't know!/" Jacky howled, bursting into tears. "I never suspected anything! I could have hurt you!" He was inconsolable, and threw the game box across the room in a fit of misery. It landed on the counter. "How could you not be mad at me after all that!"
"Because after that, you fell out of a third story window and cracked your head, and I was more concerned with the fact that you were hospitalized than to really think about anything else." Claire said, stepping over to him and putting her hands on his before he could start absentmindedly stress plucking his feathers again. "Besides, I'm not mad at you about it. It was a little shocking, yes, but what's important is we're here now and, um, n-none of this is reassuring at all whatsoever, is it?"
"... I just found out that you not only play video games, but I could have essentially killed you, no, it's not really helping right now." Jacky said in a rather squawky tone, as his voice was rather shot now from all the shouting throughout the night. "... Honestly, at this point, I'll just accept this was just some sort of weird fever dream that I had and that I'm actually still asleep on the couch having some sort of fit, because this has been a lot to unpack tonight. I am very tired."
"Are you going to be alright now?"
"About as much as I can be after a night like this." Jacky gave a feeble shrug. He stood up from the chair walk to the living room, but realized that his hands were still being held. "... Claire, the couch is over there and I want to go back to sleep."
"You're not sleeping by yourself tonight."
"... I have Mr. Banana Brain." He said in an oblivious tone, before his face flushed with a very noticeable shade of vermillion once the comment finally made any sense to him. "Oh. Oh! I mean, th-the couch isn't very b-! Not that I'm declining, but I just think-!" Jacky sputtered and stumbled over words as he tried to get a coherent statement out. "It's your room! You don't have to let me in just because we had a bad night, I'm fine, it's fine out here, you covered the microwave, it's fine."
"Well, clearly the living room isn't very comforting to you right now, and this weekend is supposed to be nice, and I'd much say a bed is better than a couch."
"... You have a point." He said quietly, laughing nervously. "Alright. Let's give it a try. But I'm not a very quiet sleeper. Gosh, I'm tired, and this has been quite a night."