Gathering Post

[lcrpg_npc]

The Queen's official birthday celebrations might wait for the better, brighter weather of June, instead of the actual date just passed, but there was no lack of things to do in London this week, even if it was cooler and damper than the week before. St. George's day festivities were scattered throughout the city, competing with celebrations of the four hundredth anniversary of Shakespeare's death. Getting around the city could be even more difficult than usual on Sunday, with multiple streets closed off for the London marathon.

There were exhibits - everything from graphic design to a survey of Sicilian history to the influence of underwear. And the same level of diversity could be found whether you were in the mood for music, theatre, good food, or late night fun. There was something for everyone, and no matter your plans - or lack of plans - you never quite knew what you were going to find, or who might find you.



[Week long gp! Tag in, tag others, and check in daily to see who's joined in.]

Comments

[london_spy]

"No, no it isn't- It wont be," Danny said finally, his voice horse and dry. "I wanted to make his death mean something. ...I wanted to win. He deserved so much more. ...And he's gone. It's gone. I have nothing left of him. Nothing."

[just_hex]

"You've got your memories, Danny. And...and you saw what was on it, yeah? Couldn't you...I don't know, go to the press, maybe? I know you hate the press, but maybe you could make them work for you," he suggested.

[london_spy]

"I don't even know what it was. I never- It was all so beyond me," Danny admitted.

He paused then, a small grain of hope in his gut.

"That man, James. He had a copy. He made a copy. ...Hell, maybe he can get me the original back," Danny said, daring to hope for a moment.

[just_hex]

Hex didn't honestly think James would give it over, but Danny sounded so hopeful, he wasn't about to dash that.

"I could ask him. If he doesn't want to try to kill you again," he said, half joking.

[london_spy]

Right now death sounded better than failure- But he knew better than to say that out loud.

"I should have come right home," he said instead. "I was avoiding you," he confessed. "I'm such a bastard..."

[just_hex]

"Avoiding me? No, Danny, you're not a bastard. Have I done something? Whatever I've done I'll change. I don't want you to avoid coming home," he said, dreadfully concerned with what he must have done wrong.

[london_spy]

"No, no you didn't... You haven't done anything. I'm just- I dunno. I was just feeling overwhelmed."

Even now, Hex's desperate need to change or apologize, it was overwhelming. People didn't bend to him, people didn't chase him. Danny had always been on the other side, and though it seemed like such a stupid thing to be upset about, he didn't know how to behave or feel now that he was the one who was wanted- Especially after everything he'd been through.

[just_hex]

"I could go out more, meself. Give you some space. I know I'm underfoot all the time. I do try to not put everything on you while I'm healing," he said softly. "I want you to feel good about coming home. About calling it home."

[london_spy]

"It's not- It's not that," Danny assured him, trying to get comfortable and wincing as even the morphine failed to stop some of the ache he felt.

"Now probably isn't the best time to talk about this anyway."

He was heartbroken over losing Alex's work, stoned on pain killers, and aching in a way he never had before. He was in no fit state for weighty conversation.

"When can I go home?" he asked.

[just_hex]

"Tomorrow, maybe, if your scans come back clear," he said. "Head injuries are bloody serious, Danny, so just rest. Settle in. I'll pull the blankets up. You've been so good to me."

He smiled.

"Now we can be boring wounded mates, yeah? Opening each others pills for one another?"

He hoped a little levity might help.

[london_spy]

"I don't want to stay- I don't feel safe here," Danny whispered, appreciating Hex's efforts, but still feeling uneasy.

"...What if they come back- What if I wasn't supposed to get back up off that pavement?"

[just_hex]

"I can call the Phouka back if you like," he said. "He's, erm, ah...private security. I could hire him for the night."

Surely a favor like that wouldn't cost too very much.

[london_spy]

"No, no, it's- It's not like we've got a lot of money coming in right now. We can't- We should be saving it. ...I'm just- I'm scared," he confessed.

[just_hex]

"Shh. Your safety is what's important. I'll ring a friend and have him send him back and he'll be right here. He doesn't sleep. And, trust me, no one will get past him," Hex assured him.

[london_spy]

Danny looked unsure, but didn't argue. ...He really was afraid.

[just_hex]

Hex nodded and got on the phone to Fin to have him call the Phouka and get him back to the hospital. He told Fin he was ready for the debt. Happy for it if it meant Danny would be safe.

"All settled. He'll be back soon. Do you want me to get you something to eat? Or ice to suck?"

[london_spy]

"Can I just have some water?" Danny asked. "And, can you... I don't know how to use this stupid bed," he sighed "I just want to sit up a bit."

[just_hex]

He's was more than a nurse by trade, he was a nurse by nature. Without a word he found a plastic cup and got Danny water, then put it on the bed tray and used the controls to sit him up so he could actually drink it. Once the man was settled Hex helped put pillows around him and pulled the blankets up snug.

"I can't wait to get back to work," he chuckled softly.

[london_spy]

"You must be so bored, trapped at home with me," Danny said, offering an apologetic look. "How much longer until you can come ba- Ahh."

A sharp pain shot through his skull, and Danny held his head as his vision went dark again.

"Shit," he swore softly.

[just_hex]

Hex didn't hesitate even a moment. He hit the nurse-call button and then began to lower the bed.

"Danny? Danny, can you hear me?" he asked as nurses came running in.

[london_spy]

Danny nodded a little, reaching for Hex's hand and squeezing tightly as he tried to ground himself and not let the pain overwhelm him.

"Vision's going funny," he managed to say.

[just_hex]

"And where's it hurt?" he asked, holding onto Danny's hand even as the nurses began to fuss with him, getting blood pressures and checking his catheter output.

[london_spy]

"Back- Back of my head," Danny said. "Where they hit me- It's- God... It's..."

He looked at Hex- Or tried to. Everything was blurred and dark again, and he felt woozy and light headed.

One of the nurses turned his morphine up a little while another coaxed him to lay back down, another said something about swelling.

[just_hex]

"He needs a scan," Hex told a nurse. "Go get the doctor to approve it. He could have intercranial hemmorhaging or a hematoma or god only knows what. Go. Go! Code this!" he barked. The nurses knew him, as a nurse and as a patient, and this was precisely why they'd kept him so doped up.

But they did snap to and it was mere minutes before they were wheeling Danny's bed out of his room.

"I'm right here, Danny. I'm right here with you."

[london_spy]

The oxygen mask went back on before he could say anything, and soon he was being whisked off for a ct and an mri.

By the time he was back in his room, it was practically morning, and he was doped back up to his eyeballs.

There was swelling, and with a respirator and a new IV, it didn't look like he was going anywhere.

Weak, and clearly high, Danny struggled to pull off the mask a bit so he could speak.

"You need to sleep," he scolded Hex, jabbing a finger at the other man. "Your body- You... It needs it. Sleep, you need sleep."