Chapter One: Get up
Freshly impulsive, and she'd just been discharged from the hospital a only week. She guessed healthy people felt compelled to jump from high to their deaths this way. Her combustible moods, crying after the teacher called on her, earned her odd looks from classmates. She felt itchy and heated at the welcome home party, and was drinking unusually. Someone touched her hand, warning 'Enough' and she'd smacked it. Muscles twitching furiously, she punched Kidd because his face was really bugging her. BlackStar swept a leg over her feet, and Maka face-planted. Her friends dog-piled on her like a bean bag and told her 'breathe', which was hard to do. Blackstar wasn't missing any meals. Kidd cradled his jaw as Tsubaki busted out Mario Kart. Maka squirmed. They ignored her, heckled each other and whooped as Tsubaki blue-shelled Soul. Maka wound up emptied of anger eventually, crying on Tsubaki's foot and still squished on the floor, the room spinning. She was sweating and breathing and trying not to be sick all over them. Her friend patted her. Oh honey it's okay. What's her problem? Dunno. Black Star clicked his tongue, snapping a picture of her snotty face. Can't handle her booze. Hiccup. Bee-Behave. He whispered warningly, poking Maka's right eyelid. When everyone left, Soul told her get up potatoe sack, nudging her with a foot.
"I can't." Maka cried pitifully, pummeling the floor.
Phfft. You're a real pain Soul accused, grabbing her small foot and pulling.
Maka moaned throwing an arm over her eyes. "Room's. Spinning."
He dragged a moaning meister to her dorm room. Told yu'wur drinking too much he slurred, now you're done. I'm cutting you off and he snapped shut and locked the door. But returned sometime in the night after she 'woke him up'. Leaning on the wall outside the other's room he groaned 'sleep already'.
Least out of everyone did Maka understand it all. Then, doctor Stein stopped her and explained finally. Finally.
First off, he prescribed her therapy. So yeah Turned out during utilizing soulbond to fight a kenshin, black blood's madness had latched on Maka. But why had Soul been largely unaffected, Maka wondered? Stein suggested Soul's music boxed it in. The concussed Maka made a more viable host and black blood hopped...Stein 'jazz-hands'ed, illustrating infection. The humiliated meister ducked her chin.
Stein paused voice quiet. They were alone in his office, muffled by bookshelves and fluffy furniture. It was dark, she saw Stein's outline. His bright shiny glasses. Which, okay scary. But. Recently, she didn't mind the dark so much. It was a new thing.
"You would have beat it, otherwise. So be careful, negative emotions will harm your condition. Here." The docter handed Maka two pamphlet size notebooks. "A sleep log and dream journal to support your therapy with Master Death."
Because of course she had therapy with the Master Death.
"Fine." Maka flicked the dream journal to a familiar lazy scrawl whining 'Waking up the neighborhood' Soul'd ratted on her. She tried to remember yesterday's dream.
"It should go without saying. Do not try to use Soulbond. I ran some tests on black blood after donating your body to science, when you flat-lined those two minutes." Stein had used samples of blood, tissue, hair, and saliva to quote 'pioneer medical advancements' unquote. She'd been an bloody mess, after all. Thanks to this, Stein assured her hospital bills were paid. She counted her blessing.
"But how'm I fighting without Soulbond?" Maka croaked, thumb twisting a chopped lock of hair.
"With your many talents, I don't doubt." Stein smiled. "The problem is black blood is growing."
"I'm fine as long as I hold back." Strange urges, yes. Trouble focusing, also yes. So far she was handling, mostly?
"Good efforts." Stein agreed."Yet who knows when madness triggers? Your wavelength could be resisting, but 'feelings' are unpredictable. Your father wants to use Soul's music to squelch black blood."
"How?"
Stein riffled around a drawer. "Pulled some strings and got a paying medical trial for you both. These blue pills should help compatibility, without risk. Both of you take two pills a day that lasts up to two hours."
"Am I refilling from the hospital?" Maka murmured.
"Can't buy it yet. It's still trial testing. You both would be a paid testers. And, academies' teachers will hand out that days medicine, to ensure you're taking it. Most of your check will pay therapy. Try it tonight young Maka. That is all."
Maka took the medicine from him. She dismissed herself.
Later at home, Soul squinted at the two blue pills pinched in his fingers. "How does it improve compatibility? What's this made of?"
Maka frowned, tapping the thin dream journal on her thigh. Calmed, she was still processing all of what the doctor told her. "No idea."
Soul didn't speak while she swallowed the pills. "Goodnight."
"Hold up." Soul wrenched her shoulder back around. "Haven't you tried listening to music or something?"
She snorted as she thought how mind often blanked or thoughts jammed. Music was basically white-noise now, she couldn't focus.
Soul reading her face. "No way."
Of course it wouldn't make any sense to a musically gifted person like Soul, Maka thought, rolling her eyes.
"Maybe the black blood's defending itself?" She said, and horrified covered her mouth. That sounded way bizarre. Like a parasite. Uggghh.
"You're ready to try anything, aren't you?"
Honestly, yes. But, Maka kept a poker face. "Docter said it lasts up to two hours."
"But we don't know that for sure." He said darkly to himself.
"You don't have to do it."
Soul glanced at her, his face clearing. Then with a what the hell he shrugged. "Okay. I guess."
Maka reached him a cup of water
"Here's to sleeping all night, and you owe me." He tossed the pills in his mouth and drank. Maka watched him go to the gaming console and boot it up before she turned away.
As she walked she 'heard' soft piano notes over the ps360, they seemed to come from the floor and float up. So the medicine was already working. It started quiet and peaceful. Hearing from the mind and not the ears is different, like hearing something three times as clearly at the same volume. It was not a physical sound, but a sound made from thought and memory. Strangely simple, peacefully easing her heart. Maka melted to it, flopping headfirst on her bed, relaxed. She slept. The music carried on in her dreams growing louder and stronger.
When she woke up she heard soft murmuring in the living-room.
"Where's your princess? Hey. You good, buddy? What's all the bandages for."
"If you mean Albarn's she's asleep after the medicine. We shared a dream."
"Whaaat. You did?" Black Star said bemused. "So does that chick dream about dusty library books or what?"
"Or what. She dreamed she was fighting the Keshin, and tried to use Soulbond agai-again." Soul snapped, his voice vibrating. "Equal to resisting a black hole."
"Again?" BlackStar said flatly.
"Yup." This was muffled.
"Thought her sleep-talk woke you up." Black Star said.
"It does."
"Sheesh dude, so how'd you get out of it last night?"
"I didn't."
"Haaah?"
"I Soulbonded, and she fought the kenshin. She was completely mad with black blood."
A pause.
"That why you got those cuts?"
Soul groaned. "Dude, I'm guessing I'm infected."
"Did you call doc?"
"No thanks. What's that bum gonna do? Handing out untested medicine like it's candy. Bet he just wants a guinea pig."
"Well it worked anyway. Heard Maka's old man telling doc he didn't want Maka using Soulbond. They would've listened to you if you'd spoken out."
"Maka doesn't even know she's doing it. Makes no difference, how can she be stopped?"
"It does. Soul, because doc wouldn't have let her use the pills at night in the first place."
