2025-07-07: In The Wake Of A Ninja
- Cutscene: In The Wake of a Ninja
- Cast: Yua Ooshiro, Sachie Chiba
- Where: Aoba Penthouse / Hospital
- OOC Date: 2025-07-07
- IC Date: Wednesday, June 06 2012
- Summary: Yua gets treatment for the attack Shiryuu made on her, and speaks to her nurse about what happened.
Yua works four days a week, on a rotating schedule. Since her classes slot into the latter half of the day, Saturday is one of those days she isn't at work -- and this week, the second day she has off is Wednesday.
Of course... Rokuro knew that, when he made sure to call Yua in while Miho was otherwise occupied.
How considerate.
Yua still woke at four with her girlfriend, still made her breakfast and that cute lunch she always prepares, though she didn't push herself much with exercise. Miho was worried. And because Miho was worried --
There's a ring at Yua's door. She answers it with a broad ribbon tied around her neck and fingerless gloves on her hands, though the heat from them makes her palms sweat and her skin boil. She was expecting company, though she does at first peek out, a touch fearful. When she sees the frightful woman standing there, tall and strong with tattoos down her arms and up her neck -- Yua relaxes.
"Sachie-san," she smiles, stepping aside to let her in. "Welcome."
Sachie Chiba, community nurse, steps inside as she looks Yua over. "Ijuuin-hime told me 'bout it," she says, her voice gruff, as she reaches for her hand. "Can I see?"
"... okay," Yua says, taking off her glove with a ginger wince. Sachie examines it, and then takes her ribbon off, to scrutinise the thin bruises around her neck. She takes out a pen light, shining it into Yua's eye, and shakes her head.
"I wish you'd let me come last night," Sachie sighs. "Strangulation like this is a big fucking deal, Ooshiro-hime."
"I'm sorry," Yua says, glancing away. "It was just... too much."
"Hey," Sachie claps a hand onto Yua's shoulder. "It's okay. But I'd like to take you to hospital. When you've been choked, that means oxygen can't get to your brain great, you know? And other bad things can happen, too. You really need some imaging taken of your brain, to make sure you're okay."
"I don't know..." Yua starts, slipping her gloves back on slowly.
"They know Ijuuin-hime, so we'll be in and out," Sachie coaxes her, kindly. "And I'll be with you the whole time. They won't do anythin' to hurt you."
"You're sure..?" Yua asks, delicately. "... okay."
She's frightened by the scanners, of course; it takes extra coaxing to convince her to lie still as they clunk into life around her. Thankfully, Miho's excellent health insurance helps to expedite matters, though they're still waiting for most of the day. Yua is frightened of the doctors, the nurses; Sachie has a lot of explaining to do, for her, but she was selected for the role thanks to her fierce advocacy.
And Yua is quite silent about her ordeal, in hospital, willing only to say she was attacked. She doesn't even dare to speak with Sachie about it, in the various waiting rooms they darken. She's distinctive enough, attending hospital in a dancer's leotard... but it was more important than ever to make a statement about who she was, in a white and sterile place like that.
Yua's brain is given a clean bill of health, having managed to avoid the worst consequences of strangulation thanks to her hand relieving the pressure. Her hand, unfortunately, wasn't so lucky; while not broken, the jarring motions caused inflammation of the synovial fluid of her joints. She is given a wrist brace and anti-inflammatory painkillers to treat her synovitis, and warned that the experience could be quite painful, though she hadn't experienced a fracture.
Sachie waits until she's delivered Yua home, sitting on the couch beside her, before she asks: "Does it bother you?" The brace she's feeling with her fingers, evidently.
"No," Yua says, first -- and then, defeated: "... yes. He said he'd break my hands if I wasn't so valuable... so..."
"Better your hand than your head," Sachie shakes hers. "And you'll be fine in a week or so. But that's not the point, huh?" She asks, gesturing to her. "Since he hurt your hands..."
"Was it on purpose?" Yua asks, miserably. At least if she's valuable, they won't kill her... but something like this is a shocking reminder of how far they'll go. What if he was trying to tell her they'd go further?
"Nah," Sachie shakes her head. "I don't think he counted on wrapping your hand up, too. Or if he did, it was more 'cause he wasn't tryin' to kill you that hard. From everything Ijuuin-hime said to me... he sounds like the kinda guy who wouldn't be that sidelong." She doesn't entirely believe he's a literal ninja, so the only logic she can apply is the thuggery of her youth.
"I guess," Yua sighs, her shoulders sinking. "I'm just... scared. They were leaving us alone for months, basically, and now... mm, though Mimi says they're punishing her, not anything I did." She scowls, tapping her fingers against the brace. "I don't like how I feel about that," she admits.
"Do you want to tell me why?" Sachie asks, and carefully avoids making it a demand.
"Yeah... just... the river Styx is overflowing with unjust souls," Yua starts, and shakes her head. "No, I -- I mean -- why do they have to punish me for what she did?! It makes me wish she'd behave, and, and how can I think that?! I'm the worst! The worst!" Her metaphorical speech makes more sense, as the dam of her grief breaks, and her voice raises with her anger and her upset. She grasps at the sides of her head, shaking it vigorously. "How can I do that to her?!"
"Hey," Sachie says, shifting to come into Yua's field of view again. "Hey, Ooshiro-hime, you haven't done a thing. Not a damn thing. You just had a thought," she emphasises, calmly. "And it's exactly the kind of thought those people want you to have. I saw this all the time," she goes on, when Yua looks to her again. "If you punish a group for the mistakes of one guy -- all those men are gonna make sure he doesn't make it twice. And what your brother says can mean more to you than what your boss demands, even if you're a respectful guy. It works, y'know? If you tell Ijuuin-hime to mind her manners, she'll hear you way clearer than them."
"But that's... so cruel," Yua says, biting at her lip.
"Yeah," Sachie agrees. "It's not easy. They give her the carrot, and you the stick... it's hard for both of you, but you're the one with the bruises. I don't know the full situation, but..." Sachie's just glad she's not disposable. She's seen... enough examples of sweet young women being used to make a point. She can't say that, though, in the face of Yua's fears. Instead: "Ijuuin-hime is bein' careful, right? But they can manufacture any reason to be angry."
"Yeah," Yua says. "They said it was my fault, since I wasn't respectful... Mimi says it's not my fault, but what if it really was because of me?"
"No way," Sachie says. "That's just one more example of how fake it all is. I think they were going to do this, no matter what you two were doing -- just to remind you that they could."
"So no matter what Mimi did, it wouldn't have changed their minds?" Yua looks close to tears, realising that. "They already decided to do it... is that why they did it yesterday?"
"Probably," Sachie leans forward, hands grasping at her knees. "They know your schedule. But you've had a big day," she adds, because she can see the way Yua's lip wobbles. "Why don't we find Tiger and say hello?"
Their lovely giant orange cat, as always, is a big contributor to Yua's recovery.