Chapter 18: And he covered me

For Vlad's birthday that meant it'd been ten months already ten months dying ten months alone June brought a few mini cakes from the closest bakery.

"I'd have made some myself, except my usual attempts at baking are generally... Well. Edible is one thing, and probably the only positive one I can say about my cakes."

Vlad stared at the half-strawberry on top of his fraisier cake for a moment before answering thoughtlessly:

"We could practice together, one da..."

Then he stopped short and kept staring at his cake.

you know there is no future where you are free to practice baking

for that you'd need to be allowed in a kitchen out of this room away from the hospital

"That's such a great idea! We could take a class somewhere and see which one of us is the biggest disaster!"

He gave June a grateful smile and took the little spoon she was handing him.

"Thanks for the cakes."

June smiled wildly.

"Of course, I..."

They heard the door open and looked over.

Guillermo Bianco stood there, looking amused at the sight of them with dessert plates and small cakes, June sitting in the purple chair and Vlad on the edge of his hospital bed.

June reddened and tried to stand up, with nervous glances towards the cake box.

"Director Bianco! I'm sorry, I shouldn't have...!"

The older man shook his head and went to lean against a wall, since the only chair was already taken.

"Don't worry, Nurse Porter, and stay in your seat. I'm not going to fire you for having brought cakes inside the clinic, as long as you don't make it a habit. I hear it is Mister Master's birthday, and we never had such a long stay before, he could do with a pick-me-up, I'm certain. Cake is hardly the worst thing you could have brought."

From what June had told Vlad, most patients of the clinic only stayed a few weeks, two or three months at most.

They were getting closer to eight full months for him.

it won't stop you'll be stuck here forever in between life and death

in agony

June relaxed visibly and threw another glance at the cake box.

"Do... Would you want one, Director? I didn't expect you to stop by, but I bought a small selection of mini cakes, there has to be something you'd like?"

"No, thank you, I need to regulate my sugar intake. On the other hand, I'd appreciate a glass of water if you don't mind, Nurse Porter."

June fumbled with the paper cups, and they started talking about the books they'd started reading. She'd get Vlad one of her old novels every week, on top of the academic papers he'd asked her for his studies – he'd eventually looked into getting a business degree, after some more prodding from June, and last month he'd gotten a letter back from the university, arrangements to make it happen despite...

Well, everything else going on.

So they talked about the books, about his studies, about whatever caught June's fancy. Occasionally, Bianco would add a word, but he seemed mostly content staying quiet and drinking his – second, third, fourth... – glass of water.

If Vlad had still been at Madison, Jack his fault would be singing a silly birthday song and otherwise trying to make them deaf,and Maddie would ask him if he had new ideas for their projects. Maybe she'd have said yes to dating, too – but now he would never know.

He couldn't help but wonder if they'd have sent a card, if they'd known where to send it. He did get one from his parents, after all all they'd have to do was ask Mama and Dad about him.

they hadn't come during those first two months at the hospital

"Mister Master, I'm happy to see that you are, in fact, doing better."

Bianco looked about to leave – he certainly had things to do, him not like Vlad who could only spend his days waiting for nothing to happen – but the older man did seem sincere.

Vlad uneasily smiled back.

It was true that his hands were much better than before, that he flatlined less often now – once a month, at worst? – and that his fevers were less frequent, but he was hardly well.

Then again, Bianco had said "better", not well.

There was also the matter of his weirdness, the things no one seemed to mention but that Vlad could see in the mirror, those things they had to see too. The teeth too sharp, the ears too pointed, the death pallor.

nothing outright inhuman nothing entirely suspicious except for the fact that they didn't use to be so marked before

some days the pallor bordered on inhumanly blue

once it had been as blue and cold as a corpse

No one said anything, not June, not Bianco, not the occasional not-nurses who took over when June finished her shifts, not the doctors. Sometimes their eyes lingered, yes, but they still kept quiet about and sometimes Vlad wondered if he was going insane too if he'd started seeing things.

The older man glanced briefly at June as he stood in the door frame, before focusing back on Vlad.

"We... We've obtained an old species of flowers, a few weeks back. They are known for their occult properties, maybe you've heard of them, Mister Master? Blood blossoms."

Vlad frowned, and the director seemed to deduce that no, their patient hadn't heard of those before.

"Ah, well. Our researcher has been looking into these flowers and hopes she can come up with several treatments against ectoplasm-based infections thanks to them. She's completed a first batch for your case and has been using some of your cell samples to test it, with promising results. The treatment should speed up the destruction of the ectoplasm lingering under your skin, if everything works as planned. You've already gotten rid of a lot of it, if your skin condition's betterment is to be believed, and it should help you get rid of the rest."

Vlad didn't say anything – didn't trust himself to speak up. That sounded too good to be true, too...

It might even work, if it was only an ectoplasm infection.

he remembered the mirror his own skin turning dead

Bianco finished with a slightly sadder smile:

"Of course, this is all experimental. We can't test that treatment on anyone else, and there might be drawbacks we couldn't see with only your cell samples. If it makes things worse, do not hesitate to tell June. It might take a few tries before our researcher can find the proper formula to use."

"I... Of course. Thank you, Director. I really..."

Vlad trailed off, and the older man shook his head.

"No need to thank us, Mister Masters. It is my job to try and help people who have been affected by ghosts, no matter how that happened. We were too late to protect you, we should really have contacted you about your research sooner, but we didn't think you were so advanced in your experiments already... My point is, the least I can do is try and help you recover from your ordeal."

Bianco left them on those words, then.

June sighed and put the last mini cake on his dessert plate.

"The director is right, you know. We all chose to work for his organization because we believe we can do something to protect the general population from ghosts running amok. This isn't quite what happened to you, but still..."

Something rolled heavily at the bottom of Vlad's stomach, and he didn't touch his last cake.

June took his hands in hers, then:

"Promise me, Vlad. Promise that if the treatment makes you worse you will tell me right away."

She was worried, he could tell.

It was logical to be worried. Bianco was right when he said the preliminary tests they could do for that treatment were limited, since Vlad was the only person affected. This was going to be entirely experimental and Vlad...

a flash of green hurts can't breathe something burns pain please what happened help

Vlad couldn't earnestly say experimental science was without risks.

if it was if the world was a better easier fairer place he wouldn't be here he wouldn't be wasting away he wouldn't be doubting his own continued life

"I promise I will."

but sometimes

sometimes promises meant nothing sometimes friends promised they'd stay with you no matter how hard it would get sometimes

sometimes they left you to rot still

sometimes the accident Jack's fault Jack's stupidity happened too fast and after that it was too late

Just a happy little reminder: by the time Vlad will reach canon, none of the people he's bonding with will remain, for one reason or another. He'll be thoroughly alone then. Not saying I'm gonna fridge anyone, but maybe I'm gonna fridge everyone...

You know, just in case you get attached.