"SATEN LET ME GO!"
"Nope."
Those two sentences succinctly summarized the better part of the last hour as Saten, wearing rubber gloves to protect herself, bodily kept pushing Mikoto back into her bed. Mikoto, the powerful and unstoppable Railgun, was currently being repeatedly defeated and returned to her bed by Saten, with no powers beyond upper body strength and rubber gloves.
Mikoto had the physical strength of what felt like a hamster at the moment, her physical therapy progressing, but still moving with limbs that barely functioned.
"She isn't seeing visitors yet, and there's… something going on outside." Saten looked over her shoulder at the door where she heard what sounded like the occasional clapping of heavy boots running or walking by the door.
Saten, without looking, pushed Mikoto on the chest again as she tried to take advantage of Saten looking away to sneak out of bed. A loud growl emanated from the bed.
"I'll go see what's going on outside, and when we can see Kuroko. I promise to come back with everything if you just stay in bed, OK?" Saten asked, staring Mikoto down, the level 5 huffing as she sat back down in her bed, crossing her arms and pouting like a child.
"Fine." She mumbled quietly. Saten let out a sigh of relief, moving to the door and pausing to see if Mikoto made any move to follow. When she was relatively confident she'd stay put, Saten closed the door behind her.
Kuroko had woken up yesterday, and it had been round-the-clock doctors, nurses, and other medical staff in and out of her room since then. No one beyond the hospital staff had seen her yet, and her friends had no idea what her condition was. Mikoto, unsurprisingly, had been very adamant about seeing Kuroko immediately, insisting that she needed to help her with her pain. It wasn't lost on Uiharu and Saten, who recently learned how Kuroko focused her powers through her arms, that Kuroko's arms were likely in extreme pain, even after all these months of rest and care. It was understandable that Mikoto wanted to help, but Saten knew the hospital staff knew what they were doing, and Mikoto was acting purely on emotion.
Saten sighed a little as she paused outside the door, looking around with surprise as two Anti-Skill troopers jogged past her. All around she saw Anti-Skill troops, all of them heavily armed. None of them seemed to be reacting in any way that would imply any violence going on, but it was still… disconcerting.
Deciding it was time to snoop, Saten casually walked around, listening in to bits and pieces of conversations as the soldiers discussed things while using the guise of finding Uiharu to deflect suspicion.
"-Entrance's 2 through 7 are covered with a contingent-"
"-Condition of Corporal Akih-
"-races left at the site-"
Saten furrowed her brow as she listened to the serious voices, superiors giving orders to their troops who moved through the hospital, their faces looking quite severe, security robots zooming by her to assist Anti-Skill. It was somewhat concerning, to say the least. In the end, her lie turned to truth as she spotted Uiharu sitting on a chair with her laptop across her legs, however her eyes were not currently on it. Instead she was on her cell phone, talking to someone. Saten approached her, opening her mouth to greet, but pausing as her eavesdropping temptation conquered her.
"Mhm. Mhm! Yes! How does this Saturday work…" She trailed off as she saw Saten approaching, her attention jerking back to the phone.
"Still here! I'll call you back, OK?" She said, pausing for only a second before hastily ending the call and pocketing her phone.
"Sorry about that, how are you doing Saten-san?" Uiharu gave her friend a smile, which was returned with a suspicious eyebrow.
"Who was that, huh?" Saten leaned forward with a somewhat lecherous smile. "Got a hot date?" She asked, though her smile lessened as a voice in the back of her head reminded her what Uiharu had almost been victim to nearly a year ago. Uiharu simply blushed and seemed, mercifully, unperturbed.
"N-no, nothing like that! How about you? How have you been holding up?" She asked, Saten having her turn in being evasive. "Just fine, you know me, tough as nails." She grinned, putting her hand on her hip before watching an Anti-Skill trooper pass them by.
"What is with Anti-Skill?" She asked, to which Uiharu, thankfully, had an answer.
"Someone attacked one of the guards here and badly wounded them. They say a young man showed up and chased the intruder, but pulled back and let them escape so the guard wouldn't die." Uiharu explained, some windows on her laptop monitor implying she'd not acquired all of that entirely through legitimate means.
"Did you get a picture of the guy?" Saten asked, leaning over and peeking at the laptop.
"Not of the intruder, but I did get a picture of the one who ran him off. He's that one there, in the sweater-vest. I think that's a uniform from Okajima High School." She pointed at the screen where a dark haired young man in a school uniform that consisted of gray-tan slacks and a shirt with a sweater vest and tie stood with his fists on his hips before he leaped down and bodily lifted the injured guard, running him into the building.
"Who is that?" Saten mumbled with curiosity, her eyebrows raised at yet another mystery.
Mikoto was stew in her own impotent rage in her bed. She was tempted to just go see Kuroko and ignore Saten, but… to be honest, she wasn't sure she'd be able to walk there without help. So she settled with balling her fists up and squeezing down on her blanket angrily.
Her thoughts did not remain undisturbed for long as she felt a calming influence occasionally sneak in to her head. She tried to relax, feeling the Network prodding at her gently, her little sisters attempting to soothe her rage with thousands of murmuring voices. It worked, mostly, and she tried to reply in apology to them, but couldn't. It was still so difficult to say anything across the Misaka Network. She didn't know how the Sisters did so with such ease. Receiving or sending signals was profoundly difficult for her.
A knock at her door brought her from her thoughts, the door sliding open to show a well-dressed older man with a full white beard and one eye, the other eye a solid black metal sphere situated in the socket. It was a little unnerving, and she wondered whether it was cybernetic or decorative. The man himself was likely in his late 40's or early 50's, and towered at easily above six foot. He filled the suit he wore, his bulk implying significant muscle.
"Pardon the intrusion, Misaka-ojou-sama." The man said with a formal and polite deep voice, entering and closing the door behind him.
"I am the duly appointed representative here on behalf of Alesteir Crowley-sama." The man explained, circling around Mikoto's bed to stand several feet from the foot of it. Mikoto tensed visibly at this. She had, by all realistic interpretations, waged war against the Board, and by proxy, the Superintendent. She doubted the Superintendent was unaware of Level 6 Shift. She was half expecting to be quietly disposed of any day now.
"Crowley-sama would like to extend his thanks for the service you have done for the city in protecting it from certain disaster. He expresses that he sympathizes with the physical and emotional suffering you have endured, and Academy City will continue to support you and your recovery." The man said formally, his one hand behind his back while the other had a jacket draped across it in front of his chest.
Mikoto blinked, not much expecting this message. She shifted a little uncomfortably, her eyes darting for a moment.
"U-um, my thanks to the Superintendent." She said politely, trying to the severe-looking man a weak smile.
"I shall pass them along. There is more, however." He stated, Mikoto's head twitching up at him in attention.
"He wishes I pass along the following message. He is, to put it mildly, unhappy with your decision to destroy Orihime II, and Tree Diagram, and the resulting damage that came from the following events that crippled the upper levels of Endymion. He applauds your creativity in pursuing your goals, but advises against such emotional decisions in the future, lest they become a bad habit, and he be forced to take disciplinary action he does not wish to impose upon you. The Superintendent cares deeply for all the students under his care, and would hate to see such habits prove detrimental to you or others." He said with a level tone, his single eyed gaze boring into her, Mikoto feeling her heart pound at the not-so-subtle implications.
"I wish you a pleasant day, ojou-sama." The man said, bowing in respect before turning in departing, Mikoto only giving a weak, half-hearted bow from her bed as he departed without another word, more than a little shaken up.
Somehow, such a gentle warning terrified her more than any overt action she had been expecting.
"...Damn it…"
Saten and Uiharu were at a loss on who this figure might be. Uiharu had said that she was going to try some facial recognition, but it would take time. She had wandered over to speak to some fellow Judgement officers, including her superior Konori who had volunteered as additional security after hearing of the attack.
Saten stood by herself, her eyes wandering the hospital hall she was in. Her gaze stopped as they spotted a man getting taken to a room, blood leaking from a rag he was holding up to a wound at his head. Saten blinked once, then twice, and then sprinted down the hall for the bathroom as images began to flash through her head. She tore into the bathroom stall, throwing it open and practically throwing her head over it, just barely in time as her stomach evicted its contents.
For what felt like forever, she vomited, hugging her own belly at the miserable sensation it brought on, reduced to dry retching before she managed to get it under control, taking deep breaths.
"Fuck…" She hissed in a hoarse voice, flushing the toilet to get the contents out of her face. Images of the night of Treefall danced across her mind, of those two men. In the moment, she wanted to protect Uiharu, and that took precedence over everything else. She had swung her bat to defend, and focused on keeping Uiharu safe. It had helped her stay focused.
But she no longer had that luxury. Now… now she knew what she'd done. She had learned that both of those men had died from head trauma. How could they have not? She could recall vividly that night what she'd done. She was angry, disgusted, infuriated at what they had tried to do to Uiharu, had tried to violate her body. She had slammed that bat down with so much force with every swing her arms had been shaking for days afterward.
But now… now all she had was the memory of bludgeoning two human beings, no matter how despicable, to death. Emotion faded and left only reality, and she hated it.
She forced herself off of the floor, moving to the sink and trying to wash the dreadful taste out of her mouth. She cleaned herself up, determined to not let anyone see her like this. She quietly left the bathroom, stopping in her tracks as she spotted the man they called "Heaven Canceller". She had briefly met with him after the incident, after Treefall, to be evaluated for trauma, and he'd insisted on therapy with a trained professional… therapy that she'd been skipping. She saw him moving toward her direction, and in a panic, leaped into the first door she saw, closing the door behind her.
She didn't want to be confronted right now, she just… couldn't take it. She looked into the room she had jumped in, half hoping for a storage closet but instead found herself in a patient's room. At first she thought it empty, but the curtain that separated two of the beds showed a shadow of a person sitting up as it took note of her presence.
"...Yes?" Came a sharp, cold voice. Saten jumped a little, fidgeting at the intensity behind it.
"I'm… I'm s-sorry! Please, just let me hide here for a little, I won't be a bother." She said in a stage whisper.
"Tch.." The shadow tutted at her, remaining quiet for a moment. "And why, exactly, are you hiding?" He asked, lying back down, one leg coming up to rest against a propped up knee.
"O-oh, it's… it's nothing big, j-just… uh…" Saten scrambled for a lie, and a sound of impatience emanated from the shadow.
"I'm bored. Talk or leave, choose one." He said in a mildly cruel, uncaring voice. Saten flinched at the tone, biting her lip for a moment.
"...I killed two people protecting a friend." She said softly. She paused, expecting some kind of outburst of disgust or horror, but she only received waiting silence.
"...I… I don't know what to feel or think or do. I just… I don't know. I feel disgusting and vile, but I don't think I'd do anything any different. And that just makes me feel more disgusting and vile." She whispered, biting back tears. She hugged her legs to her chest as she slid down to the ground. "I just… don't know what to do… I feel like everyone will hate me, even if that makes no sense." She said quietly.
There was a pause before the voice finally replied.
"Stop trying to figure out what OTHERS want you to feel or do or think. Fuck em. Figure out what YOU want to do or feel or think. In the end, the only person you will always have to live with is yourself. Get used to it." The voice said with some harsh criticism. Saten sat there in silence in response, and the shadow seemed content with the conversation he'd been given and said nothing else.
FInally she stood up, giving a bow. "Thank you." She said softly, quietly departing.
The shadow laid on his bed after she departed, reaching a hand up to brush a white lock of hair out of his face.
"Tch…"
Saten shook her dark thoughts from her head as she returned to Mikoto's room, relieved to see that she hadn't decided to crawl out in protest of Saten's wishes.
"Sorry it took me so long, but I figured out some stuff. Someone tried to-" She began to explain, but evidently, stewing in her anger had only worsened it further, Mikoto rounding on Saten in her bed and angrily replying.
"I don't CARE! I WANT TO SEE KURO-" She began to yell before something seemed to snap inside a very stressed out Saten, her jaw clenching as she slammed her foot down on the floor.
"ENOUGH!" Saten shouted over Mikoto who flinched back in shock and alarm, her eyes going wide as her mouth hung open wordlessly.
"I am your FRIEND, Misaka, not your damn verbal punching bag! You want to see Kuroko, we all do, and she's getting the help she needs! You want to help, you think you can help her like you always have, but you're just being selfish and childish! It's not about you! It's about Kuroko!" She panted as she finished her shouting, Mikoto sitting wordlessly in her bed, looking like the very definition of shocked and ashamed. Saten crossed the room and firmly gave her a hug, pulling Mikoto's head into her shoulder.
"Misaka-san… We aren't blind. We know you're in pain, both physically and in your heart. We can't imagine what you've gone through. Please… let us be there. Stop trying to push us away." She said softly, holding her firmly against her, one of Saten's hand running down Mikoto's now-long-as-Saten's hair in a soothing gesture, and she felt Mikoto bodily relax and press her face into Saten's shoulder, tears wetting it her top.
Saten held on to Misaka quietly for quite some time before Misaka finally gave way to her own physical and mental exhaustion and fell asleep, Saten laying her down softly, finding her own seat and waiting for the doctors to come tell them when they could see Kuroko again.
"Let us be there…" She echoed her previous words to herself, letting out a soft, self-loathing laugh. "Who are you to talk, Ruiko…"
Mercifully, Saten dozed off herself for a bit before Uiharu knocked and she was startled out of her sleep in the chair. Her gaze turned to Uiharu who smiled at her as she quietly closed the door so as not to wake Mikoto, who was still soundly asleep. The pair conversed quietly for a time before Mikoto blinked herself awake, sitting up in her bed and rubbing sleep out of her eyes. The pair softly engaged her in idle conversation, both focused on mostly trying to keep her from getting wound up again. They didn't have to do it long before a knock at the door announced the presence of the doctor.
The frog-faced man opened the door, closing it behind him, nodding to the girls. After exchanging the polite level of pleasantries back and forth, the doctor got to the point of why he was there.
"I know all three of you have been wanting to see Shirai-san. She is finally ready to take, very limited and short, visitors. However, I must emphasize to you all… Ms. Shirai is in very fragile condition. I suggest you prepare yourself for that. She is still very weak, but has requested to see you all. She has stated she wants to know you three are all safe with her own eyes. If you have the strength, you can visit her now."
Mikoto nearly leaped from her bed, and thankfully Saten was present to grab on to her and help ease her off of the bed before she face-planted in her own impatient rush. The doctor seemed unsurprised, and ever prepared, momentarily opened the door and grabbed a hand-gripped walking crutch for her.
After some effort and coordination with her two friends, Mikoto was limping down the hall, flanked by Uiharu and Saten, helping her struggle down the hall, leaning heavily into the cane, her weakness and shaking from weakness frustrating her, but determined to see the person who'd been in her thoughts since she woke up.
As they arrived at the room, they distinctly saw an Anti-Skill presence in the area, with two guards at the door, all of them seeming very alert and cautious. Uncaring for anything else, Mikoto just pushed forward.
As the trio entered the room, they half-expected her to still be hooked up to machines, but surprisingly, she wasn't even in her bed. She was sitting in a rather comfortable looking wheelchair that was facing out toward the window that she was gazing out of, her hair longer than it was before and draped down her back, free of her usual ribbons.
Uiharu and Saten did their best to help Mikoto, who was practically trying to run to Saten, but at best succeeded in a slow hobble. Kuroko turned to look at Mikoto as she got near, Mikoto beginning to greet her in relief.
"Kuroko, I was so-" She cut herself short. She had mentally prepared herself quite a bit. She knew that, after what Kuroko had done to save the city from her mistake, her arms were likely to be beyond what she'd ever seen. Mangled or broken, something she could help address. In her gut, she felt a weight beyond measure sink down, made only worse as Kuroko smiled up at Mikoto tiredly.
"It's good to see you, Onee-sama. I missed you." The words, full of genuine affection and free of any form of blame, it only made Mikoto feel worse, as she fell out of her friend's grips and collapsed onto the ground in front of Kuroko, falling forward to bury her face into Kuroko's legs which rapidly became soaked with tears that were becoming all-too-common.
"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry… I'm sorry…" She repeated it over and over without stop, her friends behind her too speechless to do anything. Kuroko leaned forward and rested her head against the back of her beloved's neck, nuzzling her lightly, shushing her quietly.
All Kuroko could think at that moment was how much she wished she could embrace the girl in her lap crying, wished she could hold her tight…
...With arms, that she no longer had.