The first thing (Vriska) sees when she opens her eyes is white. A white ceiling, accompanied by white noise. The gentle hum of machinery. Muffled, distant footsteps.

She's tired, so tired, but she can't bring herself to fall back asleep.

Is she dead? Probably not. She wouldn't be this tired or pained if she was, right?

Her head is throbbing. Both her feet are numb. Her chest feels like it has been repeatedly smashed in with a sledgehammer. And her nose feels off.

(Vriska) slowly lifts her head. Her vision is blurred because her glasses are missing, but she can see that she's in the infirmary, and she's really badly hurt. She's wearing a hospital gown, but she can feel bandages wrapped around her thorax and abdomen. There's a splint strapped to each of her legs. Her right arm is in a sling, and her left one is hooked up to an IV drip supplying her with what appears to be blood plasma.

(Vriska) lets her head drop back down onto the pillow. She swears under her breath.

"Hey, you're Finally Awake." says a person to her right.

(Vriska) turns. It's Vriska, wearing an eyepatch and sitting cross-legged on her own bed. Her left shirt-sleeve hangs loose and empty. Despite her injuries, she's smiling.

"You were trying to Kill the 8atterwitch, Right?"

(Vriska) nods slowly.

"Did you do it?"

"Yes."

Vriska grins enthusiastically. "That. Is So. Forking. 8adaxe! ….D"

(Vriska) exhales and tentatively returns the smile. "8elieve me, it was less impressive from my perspective."

"How did you do it? WHY did you do it? Tell me Everything!"

Strengthened by the abundance of attention on her, (Vriska) shares what happened. It's all a hazy, blue-stained blur in her head, but she does her best to recount the story as accurately as possible, if neglecting the occasional unflattering detail. Vriska hangs on every word. When (Vriska's) done, she says, "Wow. That was Legendary! 8ut Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why'd you Do This?"

(Vriska's) face darkens. "8ecause Jane hurt you. And she needed to pay."

Vriska blinks. "You….. You did that All For Me?"

(Vriska) nods.

Before she knows it, Vriska has pulled her into a hug. It's painfully tight, but only because a few of (Vriska's) ribs are broken. She winces and tries to pull away. Vriska notices and eases up on the pressure.

Despite the discomfort, (Vriska) can't help but chuckle. She carefully puts her left arm around Vriska's shoulders, trying not to mess with the IV.

"Vriska Please Dont Damage The Patient Further"

Vriska releases her double as Kanaya strides over. "Its Good To See That Youre Finally Awake" she remarks to (Vriska).

"Eh, I wish I was still asleep."

"Youre Very Lucky To Be Alive" Kanaya's face is etched with concern. "You Suffered Injuries That Would Have Killed Just About Anyone Save A Seadweller"

Now (Vriska's) intrigued. "Such as?"

Kanaya counts off on her fingers. "Blunt Force Head Trauma… Flail Chest… Fractured Humerus… Trimalleolar Fracture… Fractured Left Fibula… Subconjunctival Hemorrhage… Laryngeal Damage… Not To Mention The Stab Wound"

"English, please?"

"You Broke Half Your Bones And Suffered A Lot Of Internal Bleeding"

"Internal 8leeding? 8ut isn't that where the 8lood's supposed to 8e?"

Kanaya sighs, but a corner of her mouth quirks up.

"How long have I 8een here for?" (Vriska) asks.

"Roughly Three Days"

(Vriska) barely registers the fact that she's been unconscious for over 70 hours. "Has Terezi called? Or left any messages?"

Kanaya shakes her head. "Not That I Know Of"

"Son of a 8irch."

"When The Hail Did You Have Time To Text Her Last"

"Literally right 8efore I passed out."

Kanaya furrows her brow. "So You Texted Her While You Were Dying Even Though Shes In A Separate Universe And There Is Literally Nothing She Can Do To Help You"

(Vriska) tries to shrug, but it hurts to move her arms. "Well, yeah. I did text you too, didn't I?"

"Did You Text Me Before Or After You Texted Her"

"After."

Vriska snorts. Kanaya exhales and places her head in her hands.

"Okaaaaaaaay, okaaaaaaaay, I get it, I need to get my priorities str8."

Kanaya gives her an exasperated look. "Your Life Was Literally Hanging By A Thread By The Time Rose Brought You Back Here"

"What about me?" asks Rose as she strides down the corridor.

"Apparently, you saved my life or some schist?" (Vriska) responds.

Rose lets out a sigh of relief. "Oh thank God, you're awake." Then she chuckles. "Oh God, you're awake."

(Vriska) rolls her eyes. "Ha ha, veeeeeeeery funny. Thanks for saving me, 8y the way. Not that you evidently wanted to or anything, 8ut-"

Rose waves her hands in front of her. "No, no, I am genuinely glad that you're alive. It's a miracle that you survived whatever happened to you, in all honesty. But thank God you did. Imagine if you hadn't made it. Imagine how Terezi would have felt."

(Vriska) presses her lips together, making a thin line. The idea makes her gut churn. "Yeah, well….. I don't know. I don't wanna think a8out it."

"That's understandable."

Kanaya appears to be examining Vriska's injured eye socket. (Vriska) can't quite tell, though, since she doesn't have her glasses. "Oh, 8y the way, where the hail are my glasses?"

"They were shattered on the ground. We'll have to get you a new pair. I assume you require the same prescription as does Vriska, so you can use one of her extras."

(Vriska) gingerly shifts to a more upright position. "Can you get me one? Like right now?"

"We'll see." Rose turns on her heel and walks out.

Kanaya puts the eyepatch back over Vriska's eye and walks over to check on (Vriska). "Your Eyes Are No Longer Bloodshot Which Is A Good Sign" She adjusts the IV cord and examines her limbs. "And Your Bones Are Mending Abnormally Quickly Which Is Probably Due To Your God-Tier Physiology Though Im Not Entirely Sure"

She lifts (Vriska's) right foot and gently runs her fingers over her ankle. (Vriska) winces. "Your Talus Does Not Appear To Be Realigning Properly Which Is Slightly Concerning"

Kanaya then returns to (Vriska's) side. "Im Going To Need To Remove The Bandages Around Your Abdomen"

(Vriska) looks down at her dressing-gown. "How are you going to-" She grimaces in dawning understanding. "Oh, uh, no thanks."

Vriska stifles a giggle.

Kanaya presses her fingers to her forehead. "Please Dont Make This More Awkward Than It Already Is"

"Are, are you even a licensed doct8r?"

"Well, Technically she's not," Vriska butts in. Kanaya shushes her.

"Recall That I Have Technically Raised You Or At Least A Version Of You Since Hatching So-"

(Vriska) stares at a fascinating spot on the ceiling, her cheeks warm with embarrassment. "You're not m8king this any LESS awkward!"

Just then, Rose walks back in, Sollux tagging at her heels. "Look who decided to show up," she says. (Vriska) breathes a sigh of relief.

Sollux gives a sharp nod, then he does a double take. "what the hail? there's tw0 0f y0u."

Vriska sits upright. "I'm the Real Vriska."

"Yeah, well, I'm the OG Vriska," counters (Vriska).

"im slightly c0nfused but…" Sollux points at (Vriska). "y0u're (vriska)."

"That is correct. You get a 8illion imaginary 8rownie points."

Vriska groans. "Come Onnnnnnnn, can't we trick Any8ody? What's the fun of 8eing Duplic8s if we can't Convince Others that we've Swapped Places?"

"I mean, you're literally missing a lim8, so it's going to 8e a lot easier to tell us apart from now on." (Vriska) turns to Rose. "Did you 8ring me glasses?"

"As a matter of fact, I did find a pair, along with your phone." Rose hands them to (Vriska). She snatches them and settles the glasses on her face. Everything comes into focus. She notices that her hospital gown has little sunflowers patterned on it. She stares at it in disbelief.

"What the hail? I can't wear this!"

Kanaya slowly shakes her head. "It Was Either This Or Butterflies"

"8utterflies? I would've 8een FINE with 8utterflies! Definitely more fine than dum8 old sunflowers! 8ut noooooooo, you HAD to give-"

"(Vriska) We Are Not Going To Argue Over The Pattern On Your Dressing Gown"

"Well, it's a 8it too l8 for that now, don't you think?" (Vriska) coughs and clutches her chest. "Owwwwwww….."

"Dont Strain Yourself"

(Vriska) grimaces and nods. "I figured as much."

She picks up her phone and, thanking God that she's a southpaw, checks her messages. There are three, and they're all from Kanaya.

(Vriska): its done

Kanaya: What Do You Mean

Kanaya: (Vriska) Are You All Right

Kanaya: (Vriska) Please Let Me Know If Youre All Right

With a growing sense of dread, (Vriska) wonders why Terezi hasn't responded to her messages.

"0h, i f0rg0t t0 say," Sollux begins. "meenah says thanks f0r krilling, i mean killing jane f0r her."

(Vriska) nods. "My pleasure. I take it you met up with Karkat?"

Sollux shrugs. "yeah. thanks f0r giving g00d advice f0r 0nce in y0ur life."

"Oh, that is NOT-"

"(Vriska) Shut Up Youre Giving Me A Headache And Youre Going To Give Yourself One Too If Youre Not Careful"

Vriska snickers.

"Speaking of headaches..." Rose presses a hand to her forehead. "Something's wrong."

"what's the matter?" asks Sollux.

"I have a nagging sense that someone just used my brain…" Rose's eyes widen. "Dirk. That sick forker. (Vriska), what the hail is going on in Terezi's universe?"

(Vriska) shrugs. "I don't know. She hasn't texted me 8ack in three days, which is three weeks on her end."

"That's deeply concerning."

"I know." Her words bely the worry eating away at her thinkpan.

"I feel like Dirk may have something to do with Terezi's unresponsiveness," Rose continues. "He's… he was doing something to my head. Well, not mine. A different me. All the same, it does not imply that events are proceeding smoothly outside of our planet."

"I wish there was something we could do to help," (Vriska) admits.

"what if we c0uld, th0ugh?" Sollux counters. "maybe 0ur influence isn't just limited t0 this w0rld. i mean, we can send messages and schist there, right?"

(Vriska's) head snaps up. A metaphorical lightbulb switches on in her mind. "That's….. that's 8rilliant. I have a plan."

Rose gives her a look.

"No, I'm serious, this is a good plan this time. Trust me."

"No offense, but why should we trust you with another vaguely-delineated plan?"

(Vriska) looks Rose directly in the eyes. "8ecause I'm not doing this for me. Not this time."

Rose's stoic expression melts. She smiles in sympathy. "Then I'll trust you."

"Awwwwwwww!" Vriska exclaims. She makes half of a heart with her remaining hand.

(Vriska) ignores her facetious descendant. "Good. 8ut we're gonna need all hands on deck. One hand in particular."

(Vriska): Joke?

(Vriska): I mean, Jake?

Jake: John?

Jake: John ol buddy im standing right next to you!

(Vriska): This isn't John, dum8axe.

Jake: It isnt?

Jake: Then who might you be?

(Vriska): It's (Vriska Serket).

Jake: Oh it is? Its jolly good to hear from you (vriska)!

Jake: Howd you find your way back here may i ask?

(Vriska): It's a long story. 8ut I texted you 8ecause I need your help.

Jake: Well ill be! What can i do you for?

Jake: I mean what can i do for you?

(Vriska): Get your toned axe over here ASAP. 8ring John, too, if he's willing to come along and wreck schist up.

Jake: What sort of schist will we be wrecking?

(Vriska): F8.

Jake: Fb?

(Vriska): No, it's- oh, just get over here already!