#stitches and bandages

[whumpsday]

Pin and Needle

Whump writing masterlist | G/t writing tag

g/t sideblog here! @smallsday

content: g/t, whump, tiny whump, borrowers, animal attack, caretaking, needles/stitches, hurt/comfort, fear, past child neglect, probable medical inaccuracies, found family

Whumpmas in July Day 3: Stitches & Bandages GT July Day 3: Impulsive Two Weeks of Whump Day 2: Needles

of my 10 Whumpmas in July entries, 3 of them will be combos with GT July! here's the first of those! i will never get tired of writing borrower whump. i should write a borrower whump series someday. for any non-g/t people unfamiliar, borrowers are a species of tiny people who secretly live in humans' houses, like fairies without wings. if you've ever seen anything labeled "tiny whump", this is that.

-

Pin had been a dad for five years now, and he liked to think he was getting pretty good at it.

The kid was already seven and self-sufficient enough to not die on her own for who knows how long when he found her, so he didn't have to deal with any of that baby crap. Now she was twelve, and she was better at some stuff than he was.

Pin decided to go borrowing while the kid slept in today, with the human off at school. It was perfect, because then he could take his time looking for a surprise. Today was the five-year anniversary, and he wanted to make it special. There was a lot he'd missed in Chime's life, and from what the kid had said about her old parents, they weren't exactly in the habit of celebrating her.

He had to make it special.

Pin had already gathered all the food and supplies he needed to grab, so all that was left was the present. He'd been looking around every time he went out, but he couldn't see anything. The human lived by himself- mostly, aside from that damn cat he'd brought home last month- and was a starkly healthy eater. Not a lot of little bits and bobs he could use to make toys for her, either.

It had been easier to get treats for the kid with the family who used to live in the apartment, who always kept sweets around, but food was food. It was better for the kid this way in the long run, anyway. But he really wished he could get her a treat, just this once.

He didn't really go into the human's room. He was of the opinion that a man needed his privacy, and food was supposed to be kept in the kitchen, so why would he need to? Most of all, the cat liked to hang out in there, and that was a risk he didn't need to take. Apparently the human was just watching it for a friend, which was the only reason he hadn't taken the kid and moved. But maybe the guy was hiding some snacks in there. From all the studying he seemed to do in there, it was likely, right?

Just this once.

Pin approached the bedroom. He could probably have squeezed himself through the gap under the door if he needed to, but the door was open a crack. He peeked in.

The cat snoozed happily on the chair left messily pulled out from the desk. Perfect, it was asleep. All he had to do was not make noise and-

It didn't take long for Pin to find his prize. There, right on the desk, a bag of marshmallows. Bingo. The bag even proclaimed them "mini", like they were made for borrowers. He could probably fit two or three in his rucksack to surprise the kid with when she wakes up.

Even with the chair pulled away, it was a little too close to the cat for comfort. He really should turn around and just try and make the kid another toy.

Ah, fuck it.

Pin could take a little risk. The cat was asleep. He readied his sticky hand- a human children's toy, a little less reliable than a grappling hook but much quieter- and climbed his way up the desk.

No issues. He was in the clear. He ripped a small hole in the bag and stuffed three marshmallows in his pack.

When he turned around, the cat was not asleep.

It stared straight at him with huge, yellow eyes, pupils constricted and tail flickering back and forth.

"Oh, shit. Hey, kitty," Pin whispered, backing away slowly.

The cat hunkered down, its hindquarters wiggling slightly, like-

Heart pounding, Pin dropped the pack and ran. But he was too slow, of course he was too slow, he was five inches tall. Borrowers weren't made to be fast, they were made to be sneaky, and he'd done the one thing a borrower was never supposed to do: he'd been found.

The cat was on the desk in an instant and its paws pinned him to its surface in another, their fuzzy exteriors giving way to claws stabbing through his clothes, through his skin. He screamed, trying to squirm away, but that only made the agony intensify, the claws dragging through flesh as blood stained his ruined clothes.

"No! Stop!" he cried uselessly, gasping with pain, but the cat didn't listen. Its head drew closer, mouth opening to reveal a maw full of sharp teeth that could easily crush bones.

Pin wailed in despair. He was going to die a violent, bloody death before he even hit forty. It wasn't supposed to end like this!

He kicked wildly, and by some stroke of luck, he managed to land a hit on the cat's snout, causing it to rear back a little.

That was all he needed. Pin tore away from the paws, letting out another shriek as they popped through his skin, and ran toward the front of the desk as fast as he could, dropping blood behind him.

The cat spun, tail flickering and ears forward with excitement.

"Fuck off!" Pin shouted. He shoved the desk drawer open just enough to slide in, landing on the bottom with a grunt.

The cat's paw dove in after, reaching for him. He scrambled to the back of the drawer, trembling in terror.

"Calm- calm down," he told himself, trying to get his quick breathing under control. The drawer was too small: even if the cat got it open, it wouldn't be able to fit all the way in the back. He wrapped his arms around himself, quickly becoming soaked in blood as his midsection throbbed with pain.

It was so dark, the only light coming from the sliver where the cat's paw batted around, searching for him. Pin grabbed at the piece of paper he found himself sitting on, tearing off a piece with shaking hands and wrapping it over himself like a bandage. He pressed it there tightly, even as it became soaked with blood, too.

Pin always tried to be strong for the kid. But Chime wasn't here right now, so he let himself cry. It was the worst pain he'd ever felt in his life, and he might still die. What would happen to him? How was he going to get back home? What if he didn't stop bleeding and he died here in the dark?

He didn't know how long he'd been sitting there when the front door clicked open, making him startle in his frazzled state. The human wasn't supposed to be home yet, was he? Or had he just been sitting here that long?

"This is why I need to check my emails, Yarny!" the human called. Right, the beast that might have caused his slow, painful death was named Yarny.

The cat's paw retreated and it hopped off the desk, exiting the room with a loud, insistent meow.

"Yarny!" the human gasped. "Is that blood!? What happened? Are you hurt?"

Oh no. The human was going to find him if he didn't move. Pin stood up: now that the cat was gone, he needed to get out of here.

He took one step, stumbled, and sat right back down as his vision spun.

"Oh, thank god," the human said distantly. "What, then, did you catch a mouse? Please tell me it's not still running around my apartment."

The human was going to kill him.

He would die without even getting to say goodbye to Chime. She was going to be abandoned again, this time by him. No kid should have to go through that. He was supposed to be getting her a present. How had this all gone so wrong? He didn't want to die.

But the footsteps drew closer, and he didn't have a choice. He scooted back into the corner of the drawer, clutching the paper around himself like he would even have the time to bleed out. He sobbed, hoping it would at least be quick.

The door creaked as the human swung it open, pattering over to the desk. Pin's whole world rumbled around him as the human slid the drawer open, revealing him trembling in the corner.

"H-hi," Pin said weakly.

The human stared, eyes wide with disbelief. Pin had never been so close to a human before. He was even bigger up close. He looked like he might have been, well, a scrawny nerd, maybe a little more than half Pin's age if he had to guess, but things like that didn't matter at his size. A human baby could crush him, let alone a young man.

"What are you?" the human asked, incredulous.

The last thing Pin was going to do was put his species at risk. He shrugged. "Dying," he squeaked, unable to keep casual.

"Oh, oh no." The human seemed to snap out of his incredulous stupor, enormous hands reaching toward him. Pin cringed back, but the human scooped him up anyway.

Pin squeezed his eyes shut and held his breath, trying not to whimper, but no death came for him. The human's hands were gentle, carrying him out of the drawer.

"Yarny, no," the human chastised, closing the bedroom door behind him as he walked out to the kitchen. He turned his attention to Pin. "I'm so sorry, I don't even know what you are. Yarny hurt you?"

"Yeah." He slowly opened his eyes, staring up at the giant. His trembling started up again. "Are you gonna kill me?"

"What? No!" The human seemed to realize he was making Pin uncomfortable and set him down carefully on the counter. "I won't hurt you, I promise. I'm- well, I'm not a doctor yet, I'm just a med student- are you still bleeding?"

Pin let out a shaky sigh of relief. His heart still raced with terror, but if the human was able to help him- well, he'd already been found.

He pulled the paper away from his injuries, getting a good look for the first time. Several bloody marks raked down his left side where the cat had sunk its claws into him. Blood oozed from them, warm and red.

"Look, uh," Pin didn't know the human's name. He almost never had company over, and no one just says their own name to themself. "Human guy. I know you don't know me but, you gotta help me, okay? I have a kid waiting up for me." It was risky revealing Chime's existence, but he never said he lived here, and since the human knew nothing about him, he'd have no way of knowing. His voice shook a little as he pled his case. "Single dad. She's got no one else. I can't die here, alright? C'mon. It- it hurts."

"Of course I'll help you!" the human exclaimed. He wrung his hands nervously. "It's just- I'm really not qualified, yet, is the thing. I could drive you to the emergency room? Or maybe, um, given your size, a small animal vet?"

"I'm not an animal!" Pin insisted, offended. "No, no, kid, listen. You can do this, alright? I've seen those books you keep in the living room. You got all the diagrams and shit. I can't be going to an emergency room and showing myself off to everybody. Just fix me and I'll be out of your hair."

"I haven't even done residency yet!" the human protested. "I've done a suture practice kit, but that's for normal-sized wounds, and it's just for practice, and I can't even determine that you need stitches because I'm not a doctor!" After a moment, he added, "And my name's Kendry."

"Pin," he introduced himself. "Practice kit's better than nothing. Just do that." He couldn't have this human take him out to get prodded at by a bunch of other humans, it sounded like his worst nightmare. "And I'm rushing you, 'cause I'm getting dizzy here."

Kendry looked alarmed at that. "Oh- okay!" he agreed, obviously still anxious. "Can you take off your shirt so I can examine you?"

"You got it." Pin removed the tatters that were once his shirt, wincing as the movement ignited more pain in his side.

Kendry peered closer. "I- yeah, I'm going to give you stitches. I would really like to take longer, but you can't have that much blood in you... I'm not a vet..." he trailed off.

"Good, 'cause I'm not a mouse," Pin grumbled, but the repeated broaching of the topic made him nervous. If Kendry saw him as a fellow person, he would probably be okay. But if the human saw him as an animal... who knows what he would do to him? The fact that his life laid entirely in this giant stranger's hands was terrifying.

"I'll be right back." Kendry dashed out of the kitchen, returning with a black fabric case. He unzipped it to reveal a cut-up silicone pad with all the cuts neatly sewn closed, curved needles of various sizes, thread, a bunch of different tweezers, and a few sets of scissors as tall as Pin.

Oh, he didn't like that last part at all.

But Kendry reached for the smallest curved needle, which still looked pretty damn big. "This is the practice kit. I did pretty well with the suture pad, but you're so small..." he fretted. He threaded the needle, pulled a packet from a drawer, ripped it open, and wiped the needle, thread, and one tweezer down with the tissue inside. He opened another one and held it hesitantly in front of Pin.

"I need to sanitize you first. Cats' claws can carry germs, I don't want you to get infected. It's going to sting," he warned. "I'm sorry, I can't give you anything for the pain, I'm worried you might even overdose on ibuprofen at your size..."

Pin maneuvered himself onto his other side, letting his injury face up toward Kendry, way too vulnerable. "It already stings, and I don't know what ibuprofen is. Just do it."

"Okay. Here goes." Kendry swiped the wipe over Pin's side, and he had to bite his cheek to keep from shrieking. It hurt, the fluid inside seeping into his open wounds.

"Are you okay?" Kendry asked.

"I will be once this thing stops bleeding," Pin said, voice strained.

"Alright, I just need you to hold still. Is it okay if I...?" Kendry brought his other hand to hover around him.

Pin hated the idea of being held in place, unable to move, but he nodded anyway. Whatever the doc-in-training had to do. "Go for it."

Kendry rested a finger on his back and a thumb on his chest, holding him gently but firmly in place despite Pin's continued trembling. "Just try and stay still. I'm sorry if it hurts. I'll do my best," he promised.

The needle entered his skin, dipping in and out as Pin fought the urge to squirm away. He couldn't hold back this time, sobbing harder every time the needle re-entered him. There were no more check-ups from Kendry: Pin could see, through tear-blurred eyes, all his focus was on the wound.

After way too long, Kendry released his hold, allowing Pin freedom of movement again. He didn't take advantage of it, exhausted by blood loss and his ordeal.

"Don't move," Kendry told him anyway. He grabbed one of the scissors.

Pin put his hands up, adrenaline flooding him. "I won't! What are you doing with that!?"

"Easy." Kendry wiped that down with the stinging wipe, too. "You still have the thread attached. I won't hurt you." He glanced down at the scissors, then back at Pin. "I know it must seem frightening to someone your size, but I'm just going to cut the thread. Honest."

"Right. Right, yeah." Pin forced himself to relax, lowering his hands back down as Kendry snipped the thread, leaving several wounds in his side stitched up relatively neatly.

Kendry grabbed a band-aid, one of the few medical tools Pin liked to take to keep around under the floorboards, and peeled the plastic away. He dropped some clear-ish gel from a tube onto the center. "I'm going to add some Neosporin on it just to be safe. An infection would wreak havoc on you."

"Sounds good to me," Pin agreed, sitting up. Kendry wrapped the band-aid around his body, the stitches hidden underneath. Good. He didn't want the kid to freak out about it.

"There. That went... pretty well, I think," Kendry said, almost stunned. "Where can I... discharge you to?"

"Thanks. The floor," Pin instructed. He could just get back home when Kendry wasn't looking. He'd have to find a new place after that, now that the human knew. Even if he was friendly enough to help, there was no way he'd want them to stay. "I'll be out soon as I can move around right."

Kendry tilted his head, the situation finally clicking. "Were you... living here?"

"Uh, yeah," Pin admitted. "Since before you moved in, actually."

"Oh! Well, um, I'm not going to kick you out after you just got attacked. You're... my patient. That wouldn't do," Kendry decided. "Does your daughter live here, too?"

The jig was pretty much up at this point. If Kendry wanted to hurt him, he already would have. "Yeah. Which is why I'm not telling you exactly where. I'm thankful and all, but... you get it."

"Oh, of course," Kendry agreed quickly. "You're just being a good dad."

Pin smiled at that, despite the pain. He wiped the tears from his face. "Thanks. I try, you know? She's not even my kid by blood, she actually lived here before either of us. I was scouting for a new place when I found her here all on her own. Seven years old, could you believe that?"

"What!? That's crazy!" Kendry pulled up a chair and sat, transfixed. "Seven years old, four inches tall?"

"Three tall. She was little. Apparently her parents had too many kids, so they just started kicking 'em out as soon as they were old enough. I don't think seven's old enough, but hey, what do I know?" Pin shook his head. "Today's the five-year anniversary of when we met. Usually stay out of your room, you gotta have your privacy, but I wanted to get the kid something special. Could I still get a few of those marshmallows?"

"Oh! Yeah, of course!" Kendry ran off toward the room, returning with a handful of mini-marshmallows as well as Pin's rucksack and sticky hand. "I figure these are yours?"

"Yeah. Thanks for being cool about everything." This was going so much better than he'd expected. "We'll move out soon. Probably should have the day you brought the cat."

"Um, you could stay if you want." Kendry offered, hope flashing in his eyes. "You were here first, after all."

This guy was obviously ridiculously lonely. But he mentioned having a friend? "I mean, yeah, that'd be great, if it's really alright. You okay?"

"Yeah! It's just- I lost my parents a few years ago," Kendry admitted. "You seem like... a really good dad. I don't want to make things harder for you. I don't mind having roommates."

Ah, so that was it. Pin reached out and patted Kendry's hand. He wouldn't mind having another pseudo-kid. "Me neither."

-

here's some more borrower whump i wrote if you like this! and be on the lookout for a Tiny Kane AU on thursday :)

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event: @whumpmasinjuly @gianttol @promptsforyourwhumpfic

[its-my-whump]

Whumpmas in July Day 3: Stitches and Bandages

There were bandages around his ribs, his right wrist and lower leg, more dressings over the cuts and bruises on his arms, knee and shoulder. But the laceration on his lower leg was the worst. After the surgery, where they knotted it back together, it was wrapped tight, unless a nurse was changing the bandages.

Still laying in that hospital bed, counting about 29 stitches, maybe more under the crust, Sam just knew, it would suck to get back up on his feet. He just knew, it would take him weeks to set one foot in front of the other without pain and caution.

It had been 6 days, since he was discharged from hospital. Now he was hobbling his way from A to B like an old dog, doomed to be put down. But he managed, thanks to the humanitarian, who had invented painkillers.

But after 6 days of organic food, lettice, sprouts and smoothies he was dying for some fast food, a damn pizza, a handful of fries and just some greasy meat. Anything really, that would jump his cholesterol and blood sugar, bringing it out of the depth of this hellish healthy lifestyle Pete was performing and he was bound to endure for not being able to fill his fridge on his own.

He just wanted to taste good old unhealthy junk. Probably, his intestines had never been better, but he felt miserable nevertheless. Sam was hurt and just wanted to taste badly processed stuff, the opposite of organic food. He desperately just wanted to taste something, at least once a day or every two days.

Despite his bad leg, Sam instisted to accompany his best friend, the one responsible for keeping him feed the last few days, on his shopping spree.

Balancing on his good leg, Sam was just deep in thought, deciding which flavour of icecream he wanted. One crutch leaning against the icebox, the other was under his right arm and a bag of chips between his fingers, when someone shouted something somewhere from his left.

His mind was still burried in the freezer, between double caramel and cookie dough. His arm was moving towards the second choise, he didn't understand the contents of the argument or whatever was happening there.

The next moment something big and heavy was thrown at him. That something was a person and some pointy part of that person slammed just right between his already agitated ribs. The weight, that met him and the sudden hit brought them both down. Their fall only stopped by the hard and unyielding floor.

Sam's left leg, his bad leg, got stuck between the edge of the commercial freezer and his crutch and it didn't really participate in his fall. So there was no possibility to ease the sudden strain on his stitches.

His ribs burned from the impact and his right arm shot a sharp sting to his brain, when it was pinned under the second crutch, while the rest of his body connected with hard ground in a wrong angle.

But the worst of all, suddenly his leg felt like being bluntly ripped open by an invisible force. This information reaching his mind seemed to be delayed by blissful milliseconds.

A half surpressed scream jumped through his teeth, while his world was hijacked from blinding white hot pain. In the same moment the bag of chips exploded under him in an earpiercing bang.

Pete had circled back to get some fresh spinach, when he heard the sound of an exploding bag of chips echo through the aisles. He could see from afar, that Sam had gone down in an entanglement. Another guy was beside him and a third standing nearby laughing.

The spinach left Pete's hand again and he started running towards them. The first guy, was just getting up, looking sheepish and apologetic. The moment Sam's hands went up, apparently in a gesture of 'I'm okay.' Peter noticed how freaked out he really was, when relief spread again. He slowed his pace a bit.

The second guy was pretty tall and just lending his friend a hand, still laughing and apologizing. A second later his facial expression turned into a grimace.

"Oh damn. That was uncalled for. Are you okay my man?" The small guy, who slammed into him, because the argument with his colleague had turned physical all of a sudden, looked at Sam's distored face, after a spray of spicy flavour and crumbs had settled onto them and the surrunding tilts.

Sam raised his arms in a kind of a disarming gesture, after he freed his right from under his crutch. "Yeah." His face said something different though.

The second guy, long and slender in comparrision to his short friend, was landing a hand and the one, who went down with Sam, took it, about to get back up.

"WHA...? SHIT!"

That was when Pete fell into a sprint, despite him not even able to see what they saw. Shorty was blocking his view, but all their grim faces were already confirming, something was seriously wrong there.

"Fuck man. What just happenend?" The small guy was shocked by the red stain under his counterparts leg, spreading.

Peter ran, went down while covering the last part on his knees and stopped by Sam's side. His friend's already pale face had lost all the rest of its color and his eyes were half closed. There was blood on the tilted floor. The amound told Peter, that the freshly changed bandages from this morning must already been soaked.

"Ey, ey ,ey. Stay with me, a'right." A hand went to Sam's face, the other had already pulled his pantleg up and had started pressing down onto the bloody bandages. Sam's eyes opened a bit more, alerted by Pete's voice and the more sudden pain, but his nod was only weak.

Surely most of his suture must have been ripped, Pete couldn't tell by all the gore dripping through the gauze.

But even more importantly, these few particular stitches, that had been knotting his artery together were definitely reopened.

Suddenly, another femal costumer was by their side, the two guys still arguing, occupying too much space, while pushing guilt back and forth. Another man approached from the other side.

The woman had already her phone in hand. Peter realised the last man as a member of staff. "How can I help?" He asked.

"I need towels, a bunch of them. And you got zip tip? Long once?" "On it." The man nodded and left in a hurry.

The argument of the two dickheads responsible was still there. Peter was furious above all, because the concern for his friend ate at his nerves. His hands were covered in Sammys blood, that was constantly pumped out of him with every heartbeat. Pete could feel it under his fingertips.

"EY?! SHUT THE HELL UP!" They looked at him thunderstruck and at least the little one rather embarrassed. This guys' eyes wavered down, scanning the spreading pool of red for a second and went up again.

"Make yourself useful. YOU! Take your belt and put it around his leg real tight to cut the bloodflow. And YOU! Turn that cart. We need to elevate his legs." They did as they were told and then helped to put Sams legs up on the side of the turned shopping cart, while Pete was still desperately trying to slow the bloodflow.

Gore instantly dripped onto the remaining items in the card, covering fresh fruits and vegetables, cookies and chocolate in deadly red.

The woman had called an ambulance and pleaded them to hurry by delivering the essential information, that Sam was actually bleeding out here. They were a few minutes out.

She brushed gently over his head and talked to him in a soothing tone, while he suffered through the belt being applied and the change of his position. Nevertheless muted moans still needed to get out. His skin was clammy and cool, his breah strained and shallow.

The employee was back with an arm full of towels. 'Of all things, had it to be white towels, really?' He kneeled beside them, a bag of long zip ties fell to the floor right beside Sam's head.

The idiots were standing a few feet away, consciously keeping quiet, but still starring in disbelieve and horror.

The woman had already grabbed for a towel, even before the other man was completely down and put it under Sam's head all so gently. She didn't stop talking to him, holding his hand again, but he was hardly responsive.

Pete had his hands full. There was already so much blood and he could feel, not only the red lifeforce leaving his friends body in pulses, but how the tension in his muscles was faiding. He couldn't risk to lift his hands from that leg too soon. "Fold one of those and then make a tight rool. Then fold one in half on the long side, okay." He nodded at the staff member, then his attention turned to the woman. "Open that bag please. We need to act fast."

Both did as instructed. The employee presented his success. All attention was on Pete, while the woman kept on brushing over Sam's forehead, trying to keep him awake. He was hardly conscious by now.

"Okay. I'm gonna lift my hands and you press that roll lengthwise right down onto his leg. Then I'm going to wrap the other one around and you (he nodded to the femal) hand over zip ties one by one. Okay?" No one said a word, but all nodded in agreement. Even Shorty's head moved.

In fact Peter could have used more hands, but he didn't trust these morons anywhere near his bleeding friend than absolutely necessary.

The moment Peter lifted his hands, a sound, like a silent sob escaped Sam and all of the last tension left his body, when he slipped into unconsiousness.

The plan was executed fast. Sam's leg dressed in originally white towels as a makeshift bandage, which turned color fast. All was fixated with 4 long black stripes pulled tightly around, making it look like a human roulade. Sammy was out like a light for the whole ordeal and that was probably for the best.

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[opikiquu]

they’re all alive and happy and they can all be nursed back to health because i said so

[hufflepuffwritingstuff2]

Whumptober 2024 No. 22- Bleeding Through Bandages | Reopening Wounds | "Oh, That's Not Good"

Hero put a hand up against the brick of the alleyway wall for balance, their other hand clutching their bleeding side. Their wound must have re-opened during the fight. They lifted their suit up, and sure enough, red seeped through hastily-applied bandages.

It would take them a while to get home and re-dress their injury. Hero was just about to turn and head that way when they felt a sharp prick in their neck. Instinctively, they reached up and felt around, pulling out a purple-banded dart.

“Oh, that's not good,” Hero mumbled.

They dropped straight to the ground with a thud, and then it was lights out.

…

Hero stirred to the distant sound of humming. They groaned and let their eyes flutter open. A dimly lit basement came into view. They felt a light pressure on their side. Hero looked down and saw-

“Vil’n?” Hero slurred.

“Mhm,” the criminal replied, then going back to their humming.

“What're you doing?”

“Putting my punching bag back together,” Villain answered, “because it obviously doesn’t know how wound tending works.”

As Villain spoke, they weaved surgical thread in and out of Hero's skin, pulling their injury shut. It had been cleaned, and they must have given Hero some sort of painkillers beforehand, because Hero could barely feel the needle sliding in and out, in and out.

“There,” Villain said, finishing.

Hero went to touch the spot, but their hand was stuck fast behind them. They went to move their other hand, but that one wouldn't budge either. In fact, now that they got a look at themselves, Hero realized they had been heavily tied to a chair.

“Didn’t want you squirming,” Villain explained, noting Hero's alarmed expression, “and I wouldn't be much of a villain if I didn’t take advantage of the situation a little bit.”

“So you’re not going to let me go after this?”

“Ha! Let you go? Hardly. You have no clue how to take care of yourself, I'm amazed you've lived this long. No, you'll be staying here until this heals. Properly.”

“You can’t just keep me in your basement for… how long do gashes take to heal?”

Villain gave them an incredulous look that screamed, “you're proving my point for me".

“For your information, I won't be keeping you in my basement for the duration of your stay. I've made arrangements for you in the guest bedroom. Try anything though, and these ropes will look like child's play compared to what I restrain you with.”

Hero gulped. They knew Villain meant it.

“But what about my job?” they asked timidly.

“Oh come now, Hero! The city isn’t going to fall to wrack and ruin just because you're not running around in costume for a little while!”

Villain produced a knife and began to cut Hero free. Once that was done, they escorted Hero upstairs to their guest bedroom. It would be a while before their wound healed completely, and Villain was prepared to do anything to keep Hero resting until then.

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[whump-galaxy]

The whumpee developing an allergic reaction to adhesive in their bandages.

[promptsforyourwhumpfic]

Whump Prompt #1199

The misery of healing. 

Bandage changes

Stitch removals

Physical therapy

Aches and pains

Headaches

The emotional toll of feelings useless.

Exhaustion - sleeping all day but still feeling tired / not being able to sleep due to the discomfort. 

Limited mobility

Reliance on others

Mood swings

Guilt. 

Forcing themselves to carry on despite not being close to 100%

[whumpypepsigal]

Whumptober 2023 | No. 15

Makeshift Bandages

One Piece (2023) s01e06: “This is an old seaman's trick. The fish skin helps staunch the wounds and heals the flesh a lot faster.”

@whumptober @whumptober-archive

[letthewhumpbegin]

Supernatural s7e2

[frascospecimen]

I saw a post the other day that made me think about this…. Just a rough design because I had to get the vision out of my head but here’s paracelsus as in the one who created aba design. AND she’s a girl becsuse im awesome

[whimsy-stimsy]

♥︎ ~ Doc (dreamscape) stimboard

💗 🎀 💗 • 🩹 🏩 🩹 • 💗 🎀 💗

[tangledinink]

ok random nut honest question does swanatello feel safer when he's like in a bathtub full of water than when he's just in the lair and follow up does he sit on top of other water sources (like if they brought a pool to the lake would he sink into it or can he still stand on top if it's close enough)

Ooh, this is an interesting question,,,

I don't think he would necessarily feel safer, but he would probably enjoy getting to soak in a bathtub or a kiddie pool or something. Unfortunately, due to his injuries, this wasn't really super possible during his latest visit.

I think Swanatello is capable of walking on/sitting on other water sources, but it's not as natural and requires more effort. At the lake, he doesn't even need to think about walking on the water-- it's completely seamless. To walk on a different source of water, he would have to be actively trying to do so. He can do it, it would just be a lot harder than walking on his water, and he'd probably avoid doing so and be more inclined to swim instead.

[librathefangirl]

@whumpgifathon | Day 30: First Aid | Stitches | Bandages Sea Patrol | S01E06 | Robert "RO" Dixon

[aceofwhump]

Jessica Jones 1x10

[callaeidae3]

Whumptober2024 Day 25: Surgery | Stitches | Being monitored

The last part of an emergency field surgery, yet still concerned about the dangers and risk of shock...

[mtap-comics]

Welcome back to my Bad Things Happen Bingo!

Fandom: My time at Portia

Pairing: Arlo x Female Builder

Summary: Elenya had always been proud of her good reflexes. Combined with her clumsiness, they had saved her from so many injuries and broken glasses. But today this blessing was proving to be more of a curse.

Word count: 7'742

Prompt: Bleeding Through the Bandages

Well, look who's back! It's been a while since my last story, but I started a new job at the beginning of February and haven't had much time to write for a while.

But now I welcome you back to my Bad Things Happen Bingo!

You'll experience the usual angst, followed by enough sweet Arlo to rot your teeth. It's once again quite a bit to read, so make sure you have enough time for it!

Warnings: Blood, Injury, Stitches, Fainting

Read on AO3: Link

Healing Hands

Elenya had always been proud of her good reflexes. Combined with her clumsiness, they had saved her from so many injuries and broken glasses. But today this blessing was proving to be more of a curse.

It was a mild late summer morning in Portia and Elenya was in her garden, as she often was, working at her workbench. Paulie had posted an order for 3 grinding saws on the commission board and as luck would have it, she still had 3 blade blanks in stock and just needed to sharpen them. She had already finished the first two and the third just needed a final polish to give it the outstanding quality she had become known for in Portia over the last year and a half.

With an exhausted sigh, Elenya lowered herself onto the small stool at her workbench and took off her leather gloves. It was only 10 o'clock in the morning, but she would have loved nothing more than to go back to bed. She had been working almost non-stop for the past few days, finishing the pump and boiler for the new hot springs that Mayor Gale had planned. In theory, she needn't have rushed, but if she was honest with herself, she couldn't wait to relax in the hot water herself.

She had been able to install the machines yesterday, and now all that remained was for Albert to finish the building. And even though she had finally gotten enough sleep that night, the exhaustion still lingered in her bones.

But it was no use. Work never stopped in Portia.

With another sigh, she reached for the water bottle in the corner of her workbench, took a deep drink and put it back. Unfortunately, she wasn't careful enough and bumped her elbow against the nearly finished grinding blade, which immediately slipped over the edge of the workbench.

Without even thinking about it, she grabbed the blade with both hands in a flash, and while this ensured that neither the blade nor the wooden floor underneath the workbench was damaged, the blade slipped a few, but critical, millimetres through her hand, leaving deep, burning cuts in her palms.

The pain shot from her hands through her entire body, and it was only with great difficulty and a great deal of swearing that she managed not to drop the blade and throw it back onto the workbench. Blood immediately began to flow from her palms.

Quickly moving her hands away from her body to avoid bleeding all over herself, she frantically looked around for something to stop the bleeding. Her eyes, blurred by rising tears, fell on her textile machine, which had just finished sewing a fresh piece of fabric.

That would have to do.

On trembling knees, Elenya hurried to the machine and grabbed the fabric, squeezing it tightly between her palms. Another unsavoury curse escaped her as more pain shot through her body, but she gritted her teeth and didn't let go of the fabric. 

Fuck, fuck, fuck, fucking fuck!

How stupid could a person be? What was she supposed to do now?

The fabric between her hands was already turning red and through the pain she tried to grasp a clear thought.

Stop the bleeding. She had to stop the bleeding somehow. Where was her first aid kit again?

A few single tears escaped her as she stumbled uncoordinated towards her front door, but she managed to open the door and get deeper into her house.

Once in her bathroom, she managed to use her elbow to open the door of her bathroom cupboard and take out her first aid kit. She still held the piece of cloth between her hands and didn't dare let go. 

But how was she going to open the box, let alone take out the bandages?

Elenya decided to drop the box to the ground and wedge it between her knees. It took a moment, but with the help of her elbows, fingers and teeth she finally managed to tear open a pack of compresses and a bandage.

She took a deep breath. Now it was time to let go of the fabric.

Carefully, she slowly released her left hand and immediately her stomach turned and she got lightheaded. The cut was deep and blood was still flowing from it.

Normally she had no problem with blood, but when it was her own and in large quantities, her circulation could not keep up. At least she could still move her fingers, so nothing important had been cut, but she was afraid the wounds would need stitches.

Just thinking about it made her even more dizzy, and she shook her head vigorously, trying to clear the black dots from her vision. She had to pull herself together!

Elenya let go of the cloth with her right hand and laid it roughly over her lap and the floor to catch at least some of the blood that was dripping again. Then she grabbed a compress and used three fingers to press it firmly against the cut on her right hand, leaving her thumb and forefinger free.

With these two fingers, she tried as best she could to wipe the blood from the other hand, apply a compress and wrap a bandage around it. She didn't succeed very well. Her hands were half numb with pain and she couldn't muster enough strength to tighten the bandage properly.

She repeated the process on the other side and then collapsed exhausted against the wall behind her. She carefully placed her hands on her drawn knees to hold them above her heart and closed her eyes with a sigh. Pain was still pulsing through her hands and the stress of the whole situation was sapping the last of her strength.

She would have preferred to sit here forever, but the temporary bandages wouldn't last long and she needed to get up to the clinic. She waited a few more minutes for her heartbeat to calm a little and the pain to subside, but then she couldn't put off the inevitable any longer.

With another deep sigh, Elenya slowly straightened up, and as soon as the black dots disappeared from her vision, she set off, holding her hands carefully to her chest.

Without really noticing, she reached the gate to the village, her body automatically following the familiar path. As soon as she turned the corner, however, she collided with something and lost her balance. Fortunately, this something, or rather someone, also had good reflexes and grabbed her shoulders to prevent her from falling. Had it not been for that, her reflex would probably have been to catch herself with her hands, and that would not have been a very good outcome for her.

But now she found herself leaning against a strong chest, her throbbing hands trapped between them, and a warm, familiar voice reached her ears.

"Oh, Elenya, sweetheart! I'm sorry, I didn't see you. Are you all right?"

Elenya's knees went weak as she realised who she had walked straight into. Arlo, her wonderful boyfriend, tightened his grip on her back as he felt her lean into him even more and she could feel his worried gaze on her.

Despite everything, her heart leapt with joy at the gesture and she couldn't help but nestle even closer to his chest. The warmth of his body filled her with a sense of peace that made her forget the stress of the last half hour for a moment. She was no longer alone with her injured hands and only now did she realise how much that fact had affected her subconsciously.

"Elenya?"

Arlo's worried voice sounded again and Elenya finally lifted her head to meet his gaze. Blue eyes rested warmly and questioningly on her face and she tried to smile reassuringly at him. Judging by his expression, she didn't succeed.

 "Hey Arlo, I, um..." She didn't really know what to say. How do you explain that you were stupid enough to catch a sharp grinding blade with your bare hands?

Before she could think any further, Arlo finally caught sight of her roughly bandaged hands and his eyes widened in shock.

"Your hands! What happened to your hands?"

He quickly took a step away from her and gently gripped her wrists so that he could see her hands better. Blood was already seeping through the bandages and the sight made Elenya dizzy again. She squeezed her eyes shut.

Oh God, what was wrong with her today? She usually had no problem with blood!

Instantly, the grip on her wrists tightened as she swayed in place and was pulled back against Arlo's chest. Exhausted, Elenya let her head sink against his shoulder.

"Woah, hey, it's all right. I've got you. Come on, I'll take you up to the clinic."

Leaving one arm wrapped tightly around her shoulders, Arlo pulled away from her, planted a soft kiss on her temple and then led her along the path she had intended to walk alone until a moment ago.

~~~~~~

Elenya didn't know exactly how long it took them to get up the hill. She was completely focused on Arlo's warm, reassuring presence, blocking out everything else, including the constant throbbing of her hands. It was only when they entered the cool interior of the clinic that she became aware of her surroundings and found herself face to face with Dr. Xu.

"Oh god, Elenya! What happened?" Concerned, the doctor approached her and cautiously grabbed her hands, which she was still holding protectively to her chest. Two startled sounds rang through the room as she opened her fingers, and Elenya dared to look at her hands again.

The bandages had almost completely bled through, and a few drops of blood were already running down her hands again.

She quickly looked away before she could get lightheaded again.

Why haven't the cuts stopped bleeding? How long had it been?

Dr. Xu also seemed very concerned about the amount of blood and quickly led her over to his desk and instructed her to sit on the stool. Arlo stood close behind her so she could feel his warmth and she was incredibly grateful to him. Now that the inevitable stitches were imminent, panic began to creep back into her.

Dr. Xu quickly cleared the table, placed a flat cushion on top, threw a clean sheet over it and instructed her to put her hands down.

Elenya silently complied.

As soon as her hands touched the sheet, Dr. Xu began to remove the first bandage from her left hand. Elenya did her best not to look at her hands. She felt that if she saw the cuts again, she would faint.

It was only when a large, warm hand rested on her shoulder and a second began to soothe through her hair that she realised her whole body was shaking slightly. Almost immediately, some of her tension was released and she leaned gratefully against Arlo. He supported her like a warm stone in the surf.

Again, two startled sounds echoed through the room as the first bandage was removed, but this time she managed to suppress the reflex to look at her hands. However, she could not suppress a painful hiss as Dr. Xu presumably pressed a new compress firmly onto her wound and wrapped a new, tighter bandage around it. The hand on her shoulder squeezed reassuringly.

"This definitely needs stitches. God, Elenya, how did this happen?" Dr. Xu's voice sounded horrified and Elenya dared to look up at him. Dark, worried eyes met her gaze and she shrugged her shoulders, blushing.

She really didn't want to tell him how this situation had come about, but she could feel Arlo's gaze resting on her, tense and worried, so she gave in with a soft sigh.

"Well, I was working on some grinding saws for Paulie..." She recounted how disastrous her morning had been, hissing painfully several times as Dr. Xu tended to her right hand. When she finished, a soft sigh sounded behind her and a gentle kiss landed on her head.

Tilting her head back, Elenya looked up at Arlo and met his exasperated but loving gaze.

"Oh sweetheart, what am I going to do with you?" He stroked her cheek lovingly and she leaned into the comforting gesture, a sheepish smile forming on her lips.

"I'm sorry." For a moment, she lost herself in her boyfriend's deep blue eyes until Dr. Xu's throat clearing brought her back to reality. She quickly raised her head again and looked forwards.

"Okay, before I take care of your hands, I have a few more questions. First things first: can you still move all your fingers?" The doctor observed her attentively and she nodded. At least in that regard she was still lucky enough.

"Can you show me?" Dr. Xu turned his gaze to her hands and, without looking, Elenya carefully moved each of her fingers. Pain throbbed in her hands as she moved, but Dr. Xu quickly seemed satisfied and indicated that she could stop. Relieved, she sank a little more against Arlo's supportive body.

"That's good. At least the blade didn't hit anything important. Do you know roughly how long ago the accident happened? It's really worrying that the wounds are still bleeding so much."

"It must have been about 10 o'clock." A quick glance at the clock on the wall told her that it was now almost 11 o'clock.

Was she really still bleeding?

Without being able to stop it, she looked down at her hands and immediately regretted it. Dr. Xu had tied a new tight bandage directly over the cut on her left hand, but her right hand was exposed and her stomach instantly turned and the world spun before her eyes. Everything went black for a moment and when she came to, she was hanging slightly sideways from the stool, two strong arms wrapped around her torso and horrified exclamations met her ears.

"Elenya!" It was Arlo right next to her ear. He must have caught her. 

Had she really just fainted at the sight of blood? Shame crept up her spine and she quickly tried to sit up, but her body wouldn't obey. The arms around her upper body tightened their grip and gently lifted her up until she was sitting upright on the stool again. Exhausted, she slumped down and wished she could hide her face in her hands. 

Could this day get any more embarrassing?

Fortunately, she was able to resist the temptation and instead looked into the worried eyes of Dr. Xu, who had stood up and was now crouching in front of her.

"Does your body always react like this at the sight of blood?"

Ashamed, Elenya shook her head and Dr. Xu's gaze became thoughtful as he scrutinised her face.

She felt completely stupid. Sitting here, Arlo's arms still wrapped around her torso, his tense chest behind her - had he knelt down? - and her injured hands still outstretched on the table in front of her.

"Would you rather lie down?"

Another shake of the head. She just wanted to get this over with.

"Have you been getting enough sleep lately?"

Arlo's arms tightened around her and Elenya had the feeling she'd better not answer that question. But her silence seemed to be enough of an answer for both men and with a sigh, the tension drained from Arlo's body behind her, and his supportive grip became more of a warm embrace.

"Oh sweetheart, what am I going to do with you?" His words rang out again and apologetically, she snuggled against him. Her tendency to forget about her own health as soon as she had a project in front of her had always given him a headache and she was sorry that he was worrying about her again.

"One day I'll get you to look after yourself first and then the town." Warm lips pressed a gentle kiss to her mop of hair and a sheepish smile crept across her lips.

She wished him good luck with that.

"Well then, I'll leave that problem to Arlo. Let's take care of your hands now, okay?" With a sigh, Dr. Xu straightened up, took a small bottle from one of his cabinets and explained: "Here, this is for the pain. Can you help her drink it, Arlo? I'll get everything else I need in the meantime."

"Of course." Arlo took the already opened bottle and then leaned over her to gently place it to her lips. Slightly ashamed that she needed this help, but grateful, Elenya drank the painkiller. 

A bitter taste followed by the sweetness of honey washed over her tongue and she had to force herself to swallow the concoction. She knew that Dr. Xu was always trying to improve his medicines, but unfortunately the taste still left a lot to be desired.

As if the latter had already known this, a glass full of water appeared in front of her shortly afterwards and Arlo took it with a soft chuckle. He also held it gently to her lips and she gulped down the water greedily to get the taste out of her mouth.

"Thank you." Elenya turned her grateful smile first to Dr. Xu, who waved her off with a simple hand gesture, and then to Arlo, who still had an arm around her back and was looking at her lovingly from the side.

"Of course. Anytime for you." A warm kiss on her forehead followed Arlo's soft words, then he positioned himself behind her again, his second arm wrapped back around her waist, and with a sigh she let herself sink back against his strong chest.

Her hands were still throbbing with pain, her stomach was churning with nausea and she still felt like she could faint again at any moment, but for a moment she could forget all that and just concentrate on the familiar warmth.

Without noticing, her eyes closed and she was only jolted back to reality when something cold - burning - suddenly flowed over her hands. With a startled hiss, she sat up abruptly, barely managing to stop herself from pulling her hands protectively towards her.

"I'm sorry, perhaps I should have warned you. But I'm afraid that wouldn't make cleaning the wounds any more pleasant." Dr. Xu looked up at her apologetically for a moment, but quickly turned his attention back to her hands, and Elenya had to do her best not to look there herself.

Gritting her teeth, she tried to bear the burning sensation, but the feel of the disinfectant flowing over her open hands felt all wrong and a new wave of nausea spread through her.

Oh God, please let this be over quickly.

"Breathe, Elenya. Come on, you can do it, sweetheart." Only when Arlo's voice suddenly appeared next to hers did she realise that she was holding her breath and that black dots were already appearing in her field of vision. Startled, she took a deep breath.

"That's good. Take a deep breath..." He inhaled behind her and she did the same. "And out again. That's it. Nice and slow." 

For the time it took Dr. Xu to clean her hands, she followed Arlo's breathing and was once again so grateful to have him by her side. 

"Okay, that's that. Fortunately, the bleeding has almost completely stopped by now. I'm going to apply an ointment now to numb the skin around the incisions so that I can put the stitches in, okay? How are you holding up?" Dr. Xu's dark eyes searched her gaze warmly and, exhausted, she could only nod.

She just wanted to go home.

In the five minutes it took for the ointment to take effect, Dr. Xu got everything ready for the stitches. Once again, Elenya tried not to look. She generally had no problem with needles, but this wasn't the first time she'd had stitches and the feeling of a thread being pulled through her skin was more than unpleasant and always made her feel nauseous.

Arlo seemed to notice her growing discomfort and positioned himself so that he was now kneeling to her left, his right arm still wrapped supportively around her back and his other hand gently cupping her cheek.

"Hey, are you all right?" He looked at her with concern and affection and she leaned gratefully into his touch.

Her voice trembled slightly as she replied, "I hate having to get stitches."

"It's going to be all right, okay? I'll be here the whole time. And it'll be over before you know it." Encouragingly, he leaned his forehead gently against hers and she instinctively breathed in his soothing scent. Some of the tension drained from her body and she gratefully pressed a brief kiss to his lips.

However, the sound of someone clearing their throat startled her and she turned back to Dr. Xu with slightly flushed cheeks. He smiled at her reassuringly and then pressed his now gloved finger to a spot next to the cut on her left hand and asked her: "Can you still feel anything?"

It felt strange. She could somehow feel the pressure, but she couldn't feel the warmth or the rubbery surface of the glove, which meant the ointment was working and Dr. Xu could start the stitches. She swallowed hard, but then shook her head.

"No. I think... you can start." At her shaky words, the arm around her shoulders tightened and she hid her face in Arlo's chest as best she could. It wasn't easy in her position, but Arlo moved slightly towards her, burying his free hand in her hair to hold her close.

"Don't worry, I'll be as careful as I can." Dr. Xu's reassuring voice reached her ears, but even his words couldn't help the uncomfortable feeling as he made the first stitch. Instantly, nausea spread through her stomach and with a soft whimper, she pressed herself even closer to Arlo. Her heart pounding, she tried to concentrate on his warmth and the hand that was gently stroking through her hair.

"Shh, it's all right. It'll be over in a minute."

And indeed, it wasn't long before her first hand was treated. Elenya felt her hand being gently washed again, the wound disinfected, and then a tight bandage tied around her hand to her wrist. She dared to take a look at it.

The bandage was pristine white, no blood in sight, and with relief she looked up into Dr. Xu's warm eyes.

"You're doing great. Ready for the second hand?" She felt like a little child at the doctor's words, but she probably wasn't behaving much differently and so she just nodded, her cheeks slightly red. The sooner she got this over with, the better.

Before the next stitch could be placed, she quickly hid her face in Arlo's chest again. His hand found its way back into her hair, though a soft laugh rumbled through his chest.

Her heart skipped a beat at the sound. Even though he was laughing because of her, it was still her favourite sound and it filled her with warmth. She could melt every time she heard it.

The left hand was finished almost faster than the right, and she wondered for a moment if the cut wasn't quite as long, but it didn't matter. The main thing was that it was over, and she no longer had to endure that horrible feeling.

While Dr. Xu bandaged her second hand, Elenya let herself sink completely against Arlo. Now that most of the stress was over, exhaustion caught up with her and she struggled to stay upright. Immediately, Arlo changed his grip on her to better support her weight.

"You okay, sweetie?" Warm and concerned, his voice rumbled through his chest, and she nodded slightly. She felt warm and safe, a light fog in her head, and she suspected that the painkiller had finally taken full effect. She only realised that Dr. Xu had finished with her hands when he gently lifted them from the table and placed them in her lap. Her muscles sighed in relief. Holding her arms out for so long had become very uncomfortable after a while.

"All right, that's it. You did great, Elenya. How do you feel? Are you still in pain?" Dr. Xu's voice rang out from behind Arlo's back, and with difficulty she managed to pull her head away from Arlo's chest and look up at the doctor with a blurred vision. She had to blink a few times, but then the gentle smile came into focus and she smiled back automatically.

Arlo's gentle laugh reached her ears and she couldn't help but turn her smile towards him at the sound. Warm, loving eyes caught her gaze and her smile widened even more.

Another laugh and Arlo said without letting go of her gaze, "I think your painkiller is working wonderfully, Xu. Am I right, sweetheart?"

Elenya nodded with an approving hum, even if she didn't know exactly what she was agreeing to. But if Arlo said something, it was bound to be right.

"Well, I'm glad." Dr. Xu also let out a laugh, but then became a little more serious. "I'd like to discuss the next steps, but it looks like I'd better do that with you, Arlo. I don't think she'll remember much later."

More words followed, but a new wave of exhaustion washed over Elenya, so she snuggled back against Arlo's chest, leaving the thinking to him. Wrapped in warmth, she let the conversation flow over her.

She caught words like 'don't get wet', 'clean daily' and 'not touch anything'.

Wait... what?

A brief rush of adrenaline gave her enough strength to completely detach herself from Arlo and look up at Dr. Xu in horror.

"You want me to do what?"

Xu met her gaze sympathetically. "For the next three days, you should touch as little as possible. Ideally, you shouldn't grab anything at all. The less the cuts are moved, the better and faster they can heal. I know that's a lot to ask, but if the wounds can't heal properly, the scars could harden and affect your range of movement.”

She was even more horrified. This could not happen! She needed her hands! She couldn't work without them!

But how was she supposed to not touch anything for three days? She wouldn't even be able to pick up a glass of water!

Desperation must have been written all over her face, because two warm, rough hands softly cupped her face and gently turned her gaze back to Arlo.

"Don't worry, darling. I'll stay with you and take care of you, okay?” Full of love and care, he held her gaze and she looked back, confused and uncertain.

"But... you have to work. That's much more important than me.”

"First of all, nothing is more important than you, alright?" She felt herself blushing. 

"And secondly, as luck would have it, I was actually on my way to you earlier to tell you that Sam and Remi have banished me to holiday for at least two days with the words 'You work too much'. I'm sure they could also manage without me for three or four days. Fortunately, it's very quiet at the moment."

A mixture of warm relief and guilt spread through Elenya.

Relief that Arlo wouldn't leave her alone, and guilt that thanks to her stupidity she was now taking up all his precious free time. Without being able to do anything about it, tears welled up in her eyes.

"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to..." A sob escaped her lips and soon she found herself pressed tightly against Arlo's chest, his strong arms holding her together.

It was all too much right now. All the stress, the pain, the exhaustion and the difficult days ahead. She felt helpless.

“Shh, it's okay. It was an accident. We'll get through this. Together." Arlo's warm words washed over her head, but they only made her cry more, and she spent the next few minutes buried in Arlo's chest, her body wracked with violent sobs.

She didn't know how much time passed, but eventually she ran out of energy and just hung limply in Arlo's arms. He didn't hesitate for long, loosening one arm from around her back and sliding it under her knees instead, carefully lifting her off the stool. With just a few steps he carried her over to one of the hospital beds and carefully laid her down on it. He placed her hands gently on her chest and then moved away from her.

She missed his warmth immediately.

"Get some rest for a moment, sweetheart. I'm just going to get some things so I can stay with you for a few days, okay? I'll be right back." A lingering, warm kiss graced her forehead, followed by a gentle caress of her cheek, and then Arlo was gone and she fell into a light sleep.

She awoke when the door to the clinic opened again, but she was in no mood to open her eyes. Instead, she listened to the sound of soft footsteps, the muffled conversation between Arlo and Dr. Xu, and the soft clinking of glass vials. She almost fell back asleep.

But then a warm hand cupped her cheek again and Arlo's voice rang out softly: "Hey sweetheart, ready to go home?"

"Mmmh." Tired, Elenya opened her eyes and was about to use her hands to sit up, but luckily Arlo quickly saw what she was trying to do and gently grabbed her wrists.

Damn, she wasn't going to be able to get used to this.

"Careful. Let me help you." Arlo helped her sit up and with a grateful look, she glanced up at him.

"Thank you," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. She felt exhausted, her body heavy with the weight of everything that had happened.

Arlo smiled at her, his hands steadying her as she shifted her legs over the side of the bed. "Of course. Can you stand?"

She nodded, feeling a little more awake now. "Yes, I think so."

With his help, she slid out of bed. Dr. Xu approached her with a small smile, holding a bag. "Here are some extra supplies for cleaning the wounds. Make sure you follow the instructions and come back in three days for a check-up, okay?"

As Arlo took the small bag and placed it in the rucksack she now noticed he was carrying, Elenya nodded with a grateful smile. "Thank you, Dr. Xu. For everything."

He waved her off with a friendly gesture. "It's my job. Take care of yourself, Elenya. And Arlo, make sure she follows the instructions."

Arlo chuckled, his arm securely around Elenya's waist. "Don't worry, I'll make sure she does."

With a final nod, Dr. Xu stepped back, allowing Arlo to guide her out of the clinic. The walk to the exit felt longer than it actually was, each step reminding her of how weak and exhausted she felt. But Arlo's steady support kept her going.

The journey back to her home was a quiet one, with Elenya concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other, while Arlo remained a steady presence at her side. When they reached the door, Arlo helped her inside and shut the door.

"Sit down for now, sweetheart. I'll just take your medicine and bandages to the bathroom, okay?" With gentle pressure on her lower back, Arlo led her to her couch, onto which she sank gratefully. She had declined Arlo's offer to carry her - her legs still worked fine after all! - but she was still glad to be able to sit down. Her exhaustion was growing, and she couldn't wait to lie down for a few hours.

With a quick, gentle kiss on her forehead, Arlo made his way to her bedroom and the adjoining bathroom. Elenya watched him go, lost in thought, and even after he was out of sight, she continued to stare at the doorway to her bedroom. She still felt so stupid and guilty. Here she was, having spent the last year and a half building impossible things and fighting all sorts of monsters, and then managing to incapacitate herself for several days because she couldn't control her clumsiness or reflexes.

But before she could indulge her thoughts any further, Arlo reappeared in the doorway. Much quicker than she had expected and his face devoid of any colour.

What had happened?

Before she could ask, he hesitantly opened his mouth. "Um... d... do you still need that piece of fabric? I don't know if we can save it..."

And suddenly she remembered how she had left the bathroom behind. The contents of her first aid kit strewn everywhere and a piece of fabric soaked in blood on top. And who knew where else she had left traces of blood.

Oh God, no wonder he looked like he'd seen a ghost.

Startled, she jumped to her feet. "Oh shit. Wait, let me..."

She didn't get any further. As soon as she stood upright, her vision went black and her legs buckled. She fell uncontrollably back onto the couch, luckily without falling on her hands, and when her vision cleared, Arlo was already leaning over her. His strong hands cupped her shoulders and gently guided her into a lying position.

"Careful. Let me do this, okay? You just stay here and rest. I just got a bit scared at the sight." He held her gaze firmly and with an annoyed sigh she let herself sink into the cushion of the couch.

She hated this whole situation already. She wasn't used to sitting around idly and certainly not when someone else had to clean up her mess. She wanted to help!

Arlo's big, warm hand cupped her right cheek and she reluctantly met his understanding gaze.

"I know you want to help, but you have to take it easy. I really don't mind looking after you. In fact, there's nothing I'd rather do. I love you and I want you to get better quickly, okay?”

Damn, how could she not melt at those words? 

"Okay... And I love you too." Her words of agreement were rewarded with a short, soft kiss and then Arlo straightened up again.

“Good, now that we've got that out of the way: What do you want to do with the fabric? Do you want me to throw it away?"

“Yes, I don't need it urgently. It wouldn't be worth the effort.” She could always make new ones.

“Okay. You rest and I'll tidy up.” Another quick kiss was planted on her forehead and then she was alone in her living room.

With another sigh, she sank deeper into the couch and, without meaning to, dozed off again.

~~~~~~

Strong arms slid under her back and knees and lifted her up, but before she could be startled, a familiar smell reached her nose. With a confused sound, she tiredly blinked her eyes open and was greeted by Arlo's neck.

"It's all right, sweetheart. I'm just taking you to bed.”

Bed? Oh right, she had fallen asleep on the couch.

She tried to lift her head to look at him, but her body felt like it was filled with lead, so she contented herself with snuggling even more against his warm chest. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before she found herself in her bedroom.

Arlo gently set her down on the edge of the bed, his hands lingering to steady her. "Let's get you into something more comfortable, shall we?"

Elenya nodded weakly, her eyelids heavy with fatigue. She felt his hands move to the buttons of her shirt, his touch gentle and careful. A wave of shame and frustration wanted to spread through her, but she was too tired for such emotions and so all that remained was gratitude to Arlo.

His strong, battle-hardened hands were always so gentle with her, so loving, and so she didn't feel the slightest discomfort as he dressed her in a soft t-shirt and warm sweatpants.

"There you go," he said gently, smoothing the fabric. "Now let's get you comfortable."

He helped her to lie on her side and carefully positioned her so that she could put her hands in front of her. He placed a soft pillow under her head and another behind her back to support her.

"How does that feel?" Eyes as warm as his voice watched her.

"It's good," she murmured, feeling the comfort of the bed and the softness of the pyjamas. "Thank you, Arlo. For everything."

Arlo smiled and leaned down to press a tender kiss to her forehead. "Anything for you, Elenya. Get some rest now. You'll feel better when you wake up."

Before he had even pulled the blanket over her and tucked her in, she was drifting off into an exhausted sleep.

~~~~~~

When she woke up again, the sun was a lot lower and she felt anything but better. Nausea churned in her stomach, cold sweat covered her body, her head ached and her hands throbbed and itched terribly. Everything felt off.

With a soft groan, she opened her eyes and was surprised to see Arlo sitting in an armchair next to the bed, intently reading a book. She looked at him for a moment, transfixed, admiring the way the late evening sun made his red hair glow and the way his lips moved silently as he read, as they always did.

But then the terrible itching in her hands picked up again, and with a croaked "Arlo." she drew his attention to herself. His head immediately shot in her direction and he put his book aside to kneel down beside the bed at the level of her head.

"Hey, darling. How are you doing? Feeling any better?" His eyes rested warmly and attentively on her face, but she could only answer with a pained expression and a shake of her head.

His eyebrows furrowed in concern. "Oh no, what's wrong? Are you in pain?" 

"Yes, that too, but... I don't feel well. Everything hurts and my hands itch like crazy."

Worried, Arlo pressed his hand gently to her forehead, his eyes filling with even more concern. "I think you have a slight fever. That's not good at all. I hope the cuts haven't gotten infected. What exactly hurts?"

Fever? That would at least explain why everything felt so wrong.

"Everything hurts. My hands are throbbing, my limbs are aching and my head is burning. But the worst part is the itching. Can we please take the bandages off? I can hardly stand it."

It took all her willpower not to scratch.

"Technically, we shouldn't change the bandages until tomorrow morning, but I think it would be better if we checked right away to see if anything is infected. Then we can clean your hands and hopefully reduce the itching a little. Come on, I'll help you up."

With practised movements, Arlo helped her to sit up. The world spun before her eyes as soon as she was upright, and with an unconscious whimper she buried her face in his stomach. The nausea intensified, but Arlo's soothing scent and his hand gently stroking her hair quickly brought relief and she felt well enough to stand.

With Arlo's arm around her back, they took cautious steps into the bathroom where he carefully lowered her onto the toilet seat. He got everything he needed from the bathroom cupboard, filled a small bowl with warm water and then knelt in front of her.

"Let me have a look. I'll be very careful, I promise." He gently reached for her left hand. He cradled it oh so gently in his, her palm facing up, and she couldn't help but marvel once again at how much bigger his hands were compared to hers. Bigger, rougher and yet so tender.

With deft fingers, he began to remove the bandage from her hand. Unconsciously, she followed his movements, her mind focused on the warmth of his palm. It flowed up her arm, filling her heart with calm and easing part of her headache and nausea.

When he pulled the cloth off, he winced at the sight of the cuts, but he quickly composed himself. Unfortunately, she couldn't. Her nausea intensified at the sight of her reddened, stitched-up skin and she quickly turned her gaze to Arlo's face.

He was examining her wound intently, his eyebrows knitted in concern. "Hm, the wound's a bit red, but I don't think it's infected. That's good." His warm blue eyes met hers, his gaze reassuring. "The fever is probably your body's reaction to all the stress from this morning. Hopefully it'll be gone by tomorrow. Let's get you cleaned up anyway. I hope that helps with the itching."

He gave her a gentle smile, then dipped a cloth into the warm water and began to clean the wounds, his touch so gentle it barely caused her any discomfort. Elenya watched him work, her heart swelling with gratitude and love for his care.

After cleaning the wounds with antiseptic, he applied fresh bandages with a tenderness that belied the strength of his hands. He repeated the process on her right hand and then pressed a feather-light kiss on each of her injured palms, making her heart melt at the sweet gesture.

"Thank you," Elenya whispered, her voice full of gratitude and awe at his tenderness.

He answered her gratitude with a gentle kiss, his lips warm and soft on hers, and she automatically followed him as he pulled away. Her movement earned her an affectionate chuckle and another brief kiss, but then he really pulled away from her, reaching instead for one of the small vials he must have gotten from Dr. Xu.

"Here, according to Dr. Xu's instructions, you are allowed to take some painkillers again. It should also help with the nausea and, with any luck, the fever." He uncorked the bottle and held it carefully to her lips.

She could tell from the taste that it wasn't the same mixture as before, but that didn't make it any better. But to her surprise, her nausea didn't get any worse, as she had expected.

As soon as the vial was empty, Arlo set it aside and started to put away everything he had used. As Elenya watched him again, she suddenly began to shiver, and before she could even say anything, Arlo took off his grey sweater and pulled it over her head instead. She was instantly enveloped in his familiar scent and warmth, and with a happy sigh, she buried her nose in the soft collar.

Oh, how much she loved this sweater.

As soon as he had finished tidying up, Arlo turned back to her. "You should eat something, even if it's just a little. It'll help your body recover."

Elenya grimaced. "I still feel nauseous. I don't think I can eat much."

Arlo insisted gently. "Just a little, for me? How about some crepes with fruit sauce? I'll make them just the way you like them."

Damn, he just knew her too well.

She agreed, and he helped her into the kitchen, where he sat her down at the small dining table. She watched as he moved around the kitchen, preparing her favourite crepes with practised ease.

The kitchen filled with the comforting aroma of baking crepes. Arlo's movements were efficient and confident, the result of the countless times he had prepared this dish for her. He whisked the batter, heated the pan and expertly flipped the crepes, always keeping an eye on her to make sure she was comfortable.

He brought her the finished crepes, pulled one of the chairs close to her, and picked up a piece of crepe with a fork, holding it out to her. Full of frustration and shame, she glared at the fork as she realised he was trying to feed her.

She had been wrong earlier. Her day could get even more embarrassing.

She almost snapped at Arlo that she was no longer a child and could eat on her own, but luckily the logical part of her brain was able to intervene before that.

Because firstly, no, she couldn't eat alone right now, no matter how much she wanted to.

And secondly, Arlo was not at all to blame for her shitty situation. It was all her fault.

On the contrary. Without him, she would have been completely screwed and the last thing he deserved was to be snapped at by her.

Arlo still held the fork in front of her face, his gaze patient and full of understanding love, and her brain finally gave in. For it was Arlo sitting next to her. Arlo who loved her and whom she trusted with her life. There was no need to be ashamed in front of him.

So she let him feed her, and despite her initial reluctance, the crepes tasted wonderful and comforting. Each bite gave her a little strength, and the sweetness of the fruit sauce was a soothing balm for her frayed nerves.

After dinner, they moved to the couch where Arlo wrapped his arms around her and she snuggled up against him. He picked up the book he had been reading and began to read to her, his voice a balm to her weary soul.

The warmth of his body against hers, the familiar hum of his voice and the captivating story created a cocoon of safety and love around her. She closed her eyes and let the rhythm of his voice carry her out of her discomfort and into the world of the story.

When it was time for bed, Arlo helped her into the bedroom. She lay back down on her side and he climbed into bed behind her. He gently slipped his left arm under her head and wrapped the other around her waist, pulling her tightly against his chest.

"Good night, Elenya," he whispered, kissing her forehead. "I love you."

"Good night, Arlo," she murmured back, feeling his love and warmth surrounding her. "I love you too."

With Arlo's steady presence by her side, Elenya finally drifted off to a more restful sleep, knowing that no matter how hard things got, they would always face them together.