Outbreak, Phase II: Margot & Aiden

Margot
•••We open our scene in the past…around noon earlier this day. Our player: Margot Adelle Bixby. Location? Portree Community Hospital. The withy seer had tapped into a skill set she hadn’t used in years: stealing. Margot didn’t have a penchant for it-- she wasn’t a klepto. She took what she needed, when she needed it. Her tools? Foresight and her good friend, Mr. Daniels. With a stiff insulated Costco-sized “Keep it Cool” bag over one arm, she’d strolled into the hospital earlier that morning with an air of confidence. The clairvoyant had tried speaking with Sofia to make arrangements to have the supplies brought in from another country. A couple of issues complicated things, no matter how much money Margot was prepared to throw at it. Firstly, any accounts Aiden had in order to acquire his blood stores had been closed after the announcement of his death. Sofia was still in the process of getting a new Public Services card (Social Security in Ireland) and a new identity drawn up. Of course, the additional travel ban made importing fresh blood a hassle that very few private citizens had access to. Their premiums were high, especially as they too were undead and required the supply shipped in. The only other access point? Hospitals. They were holding, but they weren’t selling. Margot didn’t make a habit out of stealing-- she really didn’t *need* to, as she could pay for just about anything she wanted. But when the supply was limited and the demand was high--- things got a bit…tenuous. Our wispy oracle knew when to tail the white-coats through elevator doors and slip off to the side in the right halls. Just a bit tipsy, her short-term vision had pristine clarity. Her first stop was at the Nurse’s desk. The seer picked up a pink and white tumbler of hot tea and kept walking. At the first trashcan, she tossed the tumbler in. Sorry, Joy. Sacrifices needed to be made. She paused, waiting to be noticed by the nursing intern as she hovered outside of the collective nap room. It was a space designated for Nurses working doubles to sleep for a couple hours, along with Doctors after long surgeries-- and aside from Intern Nurse Joy, it would be blessedly vacant. “Pardon me, Joy?” she asked with casual tenor, gesturing with a thumb back over her shoulder. “Could you give me a hand? I locked my keys in my locker.” She didn’t even need puppy eyes, she looked half-dead (as a sleepy nurse ought to) and Intern Joy still hadn’t quite memorized names and faces yet. “Anna said you’d be headed this way, long night, huh?” she asked confirming that yes, she was a familiar in these parts. “Basically an all-nighter…all-dayer, too.” Joy joked with a half-hearted laugh. “What was your name again? Sorry, I’m new.” she added, without a single hint of skepticism. “Wendy. I work on the third floor with Janice and Bianca.” Margot responded with ease, having lifted some names in the whirlwind of hospital activity. The third floor was reserved for undead…vampire…patients. It only had a staff of four Nurses, who were usually unremarkable (unmemorable) names amongst the other staff-- they provided an occasional service outside of the current Outbreak. And now that they were full up, the four of them had taken on a few new Nurses and a specialized Doctor-- all of whom were still pretty new to the Hospital themselves. “Ohhh, right.” Joy eyed the bag slung over Margot’s shoulders. “You know we have coolers, right?” she asked as she unlocked the door. “Oh, yes. You can carry more in the bags, you know.” Margot offered, patting the bag. “And anyway, those coolers are heavy without Blood in them!” she added, rolling her eyes and feigning fatigue with Nursely-angst. Joy laughed and nodded, “I hear you there.” Once the door was unlocked, Joy paused. “Oh, shoot. I left my tea at the desk.” she murmured, excusing herself. Margot slipped in without touching the door.  “See you in a few, thanks Joy~” Margot chimed as the door scooted closed behind her. Joy was off to find her missing tea, and Margot went to work. The pure blood stores were kept in a locked walk in cooler just past the break room, and she was going to need the good shit for Aiden…and Evangeline. Margot knew she had about fifteen minutes before the next nurse made his way into the break room-- and he knew the floors and all the faces, new and old alike. Fuckin’ citizen security. Pulling a pair of rubber gloves from her pocket, Margot slipped them on and got to work. It took her a couple tries, but she tapped the numbers on the key pad in the right order after the third try. Score. She began loading the bag with smaller bags of blood. The seer paused to read the thermometer in the fridge, committing the reading to memory so she could set their home fridge. They were chilly and the plastic was thick. Beneath its semi-opaque surface, deep pomegranate-colored blood shifted around with dense viscosity. It was clean, untainted blood, and there was a fuck-ton of it. Well. It was a lot to a human. But for hundreds of sick vampires, it was a snack. For two vampires? Half-a-dozen bags would provide a soothing balm to their ailing bodies. She hoped that it would be enough to give them the boost they needed to fight off the height of the Scarlet Plague. Ten minutes later, (after tossing a couple extra liters of blood into the bag for good measure--- making sure to take enough to help, but not more than necessary…) she was copying the last signature in the report log (who the fuck still did shit on paper? Portree Community Hospital, apparently) that documented and accounted for 8 liters of blood, dispensed to a local recipient in Home-care. Margot tucked the pen into her pocket, zipped up the bag and made her way toward the door. She paused, tilting her head as she glanced over a white Doctor’s coat hanging on a hook beside the lockers in the break room. Well….
Margot had made it home before sundown, storing the blood in the refrigerator after she’d turned the dial to the right holding temperature to keep it at a stasis to prevent bacterial growth. She felt no remorse about the theft, and vowed internally to donate at the next drive to make up for it. Well, the next six of them-- just to balance it all out. Aiden was still asleep. It was unlike him, but he was also horrifically ill. If she’d been in brighter spirits, she’d have joked about ‘sleeping like the dead,’ but things were a bit more tense these days. She couldn’t see his future. Or their future together at all. While it had provided her immense comfort by comparison to her visions *before* the enchantment, it was presenting quite a bit of angst these days for Margot. She’d run a hot bath-- it would serve dual purpose. Presently, one of the eight liters floated in the water. Margot held a thermometer in the water, adjusting the cold and hot spigots until it came to about 98-99 degrees fahrenheit. (She was American, after all…no metric system for her!) When it had finished running, she checked a few times with the same thermometer, shaking it off as she walked around the apartment. After some paper-crafting and a bit of tip-toeing, she slipped into their room. It was dark. The whole apartment was. The black-out shades, blinds, and curtains were all drawn. Aiden rested on the bed, wheezing in his sleep. The skin around his eyes was red and angry. He was warm…which was odd. Margot still expected his skin to be cool to the touch-- but he felt almost human. “Aiden…” she murmured as she sat on the bed beside him in the dark. A folded piece of white paper was on her head, pinned into the wild mountain of hair. She was wearing the white lab-coat, too. In an attempt to humor him. She knew he’d have done the same if their roles had been reversed-- he so enjoyed a good joke. One hand touched his forehead as she withdrew an electric Thermometer from the pocket of the white over-coat. She held the sensor to his forehead and rubbed his temple with her opposite hand as it read his temperature: 102.6 F. •••

Aiden
It had crept in like any illness would, it started with discomfort in his joints, that turned into a burning upon his flesh that no amount of blood, nor medications could comfort. Mind you, at first it was little more than an annoyance that Aiden had covertly kept from Margot while she was healing from her own sickness. His conclusion, it was sympathy and empathy. For he was dead, and the dead did not fall ill! In the days to come it would become harder and harder to hide the fatigue, the weakness, and of course the fact that his formerly cold ivory skin had begun to burn as if he'd been alive. (Mind you, a fresh meal did not grant a normal temperature. If anything it warmed them from a corpse to not so much a corpse. ) Aiden, of course being the resourceful mind like Margot was already in contact with Sofia and other agencies he'd created bonds with over the years. A Vampire falling ill, could only mean one thing. Something fowl was afoot. Ancient vampires like Aiden and Evangeline and others who had survived the black plague, and other ailments that passed through always came away entirely unscathed (Mind you the boils and blisters of the plague could be contracted by drinking diseased blood, but would heal swiftly leaving no trace of their existence) Aiden however was only informed as to, this was an isolated case, and that there was little, if nothing that anyone outside of Portree could do to assist him. The plan was to eventually make way to the Manor, and meet with Evangeline whose unique talents combined with his network of connections and knowledges could be used to pave the way to some form of understanding was now officially hindered by Aiden's current inability to remove himself from the confines of his chamber due to the sudden blossoming of crippling vertigo, vomiting, and a most embarrassing case of consumption that had him going from looking healthy to gaunt and deathlike. (Making Margot's joke all the more hilarious in theory as he likely looked like something out of a shitty horror flick) Rousing was neigh impossible without outside help, and Margot innocently provided that in the form of whispering his name. Oh how he lamented knowing that she would see him in his blood stained pillow and crimson hued skin tinted with droplets of dark red sweat. " Hey Beautiful..." He offered in a voice that could scarcely be called a whisper. The Brujah, like any of his ilk Rebel, Dreamer, or otherwise was not one to allow himself to be defeated without fighting tooth and nail. Lips upturned into a weak smile, his fangs extended as he no longer had the strength to retract them inward, and the glamour of presence he used to hide the illumination from his eyes faded long ago making him look almost feral. It was now he truly felt his age, he struggled some to put an arm beneath him, so that he could rise upward and greet her properly with a kiss, but he tried nonetheless falling short of being able to bring his cheek to her shoulder, and eyes closing immediately " So I'm, pretty sure I ruined the sheets " he chuckled weakly bringing his hand upward to her own " What're my numbers to day babe..Am I human still? "

Margot
•••Margot grinned at him from under the halo of wiry curls. Sort of visible from Aiden’s new vantage point was a nurse’s hat, made out of white printer paper. It was folded neatly and sported a red cross in Sharpie. The seer kept her expression light-- it took emotional labor, though. She hated seeing him like this. It was gut-wrenching to see the usually urbane vampire so fragile. “Good evening…” she whispered back in the darkness, voice remaining light to match his tenor. When he smiled, she felt the pang of emotional turbulence. He was getting worse, and in moments like these, it was so painfully obvious. “It’s alright,” she intoned whilst tucking the electric thermometer into her pocket, tone lifting into an encouraging purr “We have more than enough sets, and anyway I love a reason to go shopping.” she added, as if they were joking about something completely normal-- not his paralytic state of decay. ‘Margot Bixby, RN’ had also been scripted onto the white coat over her breast, but in black sharpie. Beneath the coat she wore comfortable clothes-- high-waisted denim and a simple grey t-shirt. She wasn’t trying to sexualize the role, just give cause for one of those vulpine grins. Despite being gaunt, those charming fucking dimples still played at his cheeks when he did---and it tickled her pink. She leaned down to kiss the corner of his mouth, not seeming to mind the amount of blood on the sheets, on him, or on her as a result. She shifted so that he could rest comfortably against her shoulder, one hand lifting to soothe the side of his face gingerly with light fingertips. They were cooler than his flesh. Not icy, but no longer feverish either. The seer laughed and let her cheek rest on his forehead. “One-oh-two.” she hummed, “point six. Beyond human holding temperatures.” she added, features flickering micro-expression: remorse. She let him rest quietly against her for a minute, considering something. “I have something to help.” she said after a pause. “I was able to get my hands on some clean blood.” she explained further, with a strange kind of indifference that inferred her guiltless demeanor. “I brought home enough to help you through the thick of the Scarlet Plague.” she continued, slipping a hand over his. She slipped her fingers through his, lacing them comfortably. His were so thin compared to her own now. His blood was on her fingertips and palm. “It’s fresh, and came from an uncontaminated source. They’re using it to help vampires in the hospital.” Margot’s tone remained unwavering, almost sterile as she explained what she knew. Her eyes were far away, hazed over with a milky wash that dulled their color-- she was seeing something else as she spoke. Her hand tightened against his. “You should be able to drink it without it coming back up. Just a bit tonight, and then more tomorrow. I’m hoping it’ll help you regain some strength so you can fight this off.” she said, eyes clearing. Her voice held a bit more urgency, “And we should go see Evangeline.” she added, “I brought enough for her, as well. She’s very sick, and we need to see her.” Margot added. It wouldn’t be a question how she knew what he’d been thinking (about trying to solve the problem of the illness more broadly.) But her intentions were elsewhere-- he’d want to see her before either of them got any worse. “Come on, I’ll help you to the bathroom. I’ve run a bath as well.”•••

Aiden
Focus was something the vampire lacked in spades, if he'd noticed the coat, the paper hat or the time she took to etch her name into it. He'd have lovingly commented about it. Likely a Hello Nurse, in a sing song almost Bugs Bunnyesk voice. For the moment he took comfort in the soothing touch she offered, both the coolness of her hands and the fact it was Margot. This, was not how it was supposed to be. In his mind he never saw himself ever falling victim to such weakness that he would be required to rely upon her. He wanted to care for her, and not the other way around. The talk of blood, both enticed and nauseated him. It seemed anytime he fed, it only managed to make the symptoms worse. Which made him wary of anything he ingested. His hand came upward to her cheek slowly stroking across it. He wanted to tell her, ~That's not how it works~ but then that would only demean everything she was trying to do for him. Instead he smiled weakly and lifted himself from her shoulder, and shifted to look at her. " Trying to get me naked! " He tried to put feigned horror in his voice, but it soon faltered " I'm not complaining of course, but I'm not going to go alone " He grinned some at her before he shuffled and shifted himself to the edge of the bed. His body stretching and shifting out of the covers until he was seated wearily at the edge of the bed. His bare feet upon the ice cold floor caused him to inwardly hiss with discomfort. " I'd argue that she's likely fine. " he shifted to look at Margot who had come from her trance like state of seeing " But I trust you've better insight then I do on her health don't you " He looked toward the floor for a moment speaking bluntly " Margot, I may not get better " He brought his hand upward and into the length of his hair slowly. " There's no medication that works for the undead, and unless you know any witches, sorcerers, or alchemists it's a good possibility that I'm only going to get worse. " He he brought his hand to her own gently.

Margot
•••As Margot refocused on the present, her smile lifted the cheek where his hand stroked. No, it wouldn’t work. But god damn, she would try. Presently, she was giving a run at any lead that was rumored fruitful. Her ear was to the ground on a few lines-- this one was just more accessible directly. Her smile shifted into a cheshire grin. “Don’t worry, it’s all confidential.” she retorted, rolling her eyes soon after. “You say that.” she added, raising a brow, “but fate just never seems to work in our favor.” What? No. She totally wasn’t keeping tabs on their multiple (failed) attempts to get past first base. Definitely not. Anyway, she was still a bit sick herself. And Aiden was in worse shape every day-- it wasn’t exactly the first thing on her mind. The withy seer looped an arm around his waist, shoulder shifting beneath his arm closest to her as he navigated the bed and slipped his feet to the floor. “I have some grasp if it, yes.” she offered, eyelashes flitting from the floor to his feet, and then back up at his face beside her. “You’re both in rough shape.” she offered, not wanting to alarm him with what she *thought* might be happening. She’d learned better than to make sweeping assumptions based on visions, no matter how intuitive she felt. Just as the sybil braced herself to help his weight, Aiden paused. Margot did, too. Her lips pressed together firmly, expression stubborn. “There’s a solution.” she said, eyes searching his expression. “There has to be.” she conceded, heart thrumming somewhat more quickly in her chest as anxiety permeated her thoughts. It would have helped if the witches, sorcerers and alchemists she *did* know knew their talents themselves. But they didn’t, and no urging on her part would make them learn of it, embrace it, and make use of it any more quickly. And anyway, it wasn’t as if they could help Aiden with this. Margot hadn’t heard of Hinterland, not exactly. She’d seen it-- and a few of Portree’s residents-- but its location eluded her. Margot listened to the sobering words as his hand rest over hers. “Not today.” she finally said, angry at the prickling tears brimming over her lower lash line. She blinked them away, bringing him into focus, hands turning the ring on her finger over as she thought. “You’ve been thinking about trying to solve this.” she said, shifting her weight to force him to a stand. Focus on the positive. A rolling stone gathers no moss. She walked with him toward the bathroom, bare feet padding on the hardwood floor as they walked slowly. “Sofia tells me as much.” she added, “From what I can tell, one of the lines she’s got in the water is going to have a bite soon.” she rose an eyebrow, “But *somebody’s* involvement beyond that keeps me blind.” she eyed him sharply. “So it might get worse, but you’re involved somehow.” she speculated out loud. When they reached the bathroom, Margot paused in the doorway with him. She’d been stubbornly refusing to accept that the sickness could take him from her. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be. She was angry, and at the same time she ached. •••

Aiden
A willowy seer, and a withered undead, not a more unique pair in the world could there ever be. While Margot did not often make firm assumptions based upon her visions. He learned to trust them and his own instinct. It seemed a winning combination when it came right down to it. " There is always a solution Margot " He whispered softly as she wrapped her arm around his waist and assisted him in standing he would lean his form gently against her own. He could walk, but it was like being drunk and yet not. Perfectly aware of the body and mind not communication their steps forward or backward, in addition there was a constant ache in his body, every muscle screaming and cringing with every step taken. " But there is a lack of resolve in the other infected, they're swift to believe this is a culling sent down by some unseen forced. That they're unwilling to rely upon modern science and ancient magics " A small Dizzy spell, would have him bringing his hand to a wall, to stop the pair as they made their way toward the bathroom. " I've got money Margot, and connections, but I'm no Peter Parker, I know about as much as anyone else does. " Now they were in the bathroom, and Aiden was slowly gaining some strength enough to 'care' for himself in little ways like moving to the sink on his own to loosen a small stream of blood that had worked its way from his body to mouth, It was thick, and clumpy, as if it had been coagulated for several days within his stomach. Running water to flush it down the sink, and to rinse his mouth out he braced himself with one hand on either side of the sink, looking at himself in the circular mirror of their his and her style sink and vanity. " And I don't think it's going to get much better " he spoke finally. " There is going to be a lot of hurt for any of the kine that make it through this, Further distrust of humans, some will harbor more violent desires " He closed his eyes again. " And because of this others will flock to the city, their will be blood, both Mortal and Immortal bathing the streets. " He shifted some and stood straight to look at her through the reflection in the mirror. " I don't think this was targeted though " he turned leaning against the sink some. " It started with humans and infected the undead afterword, and if it was a bacteria, it wouldn't infect the undead. " He stepped forward gently taking her hand in his own and lifted it upward. " Speaking of, have you taken your medication today?" He glanced to the container of cough suppressants that had been given out during the first weeks of the outbreak. " And are you eating enough? " He moved his other hand upward to pluck the nurses hat off her head and place it upon his own. " Can't very well keep me alive if you're not. " He finally shifted the topic of conversation. " Let's pack some bags tonight, and tomorrow I'll see if I can't find a driver to take us to the Manor. " He brought himself closer to her so he could rest his forehead gently against her own. " I'm not going to die without a fight Margot " he whispered softly " I've got something to live for, and I don't know if you know this but that makes me a very dangerous and driven man " his hand moved to gently straighten the white lab coat she was wearing. " It's a long shot, but perhaps we should try injecting the blood with anticoagulants. " He said finally " Might keep it from coming back up "

Margot
••• The soothsayer listened wordlessly as they walked and then paused with him in the hall, concern dappling her features as she watched him. Watching his movements for the telltale signs of pain and dizziness. Everything he said was true, she knew. Some from vision, other things based on intuition. There would be blood-- she felt a frisson grip her and shake her bones, sending a ripple of goosebumps outward across her skin. She’d seen so much blood in the future it almost felt like a memory. As Aiden leaned over the sink, she hovered nearby, leaning on the sink beside it. She wanted to give him a bit of privacy, but at this point in the game, she was a bit past being ‘grossed out’ by the thick, goopy hunks of blood he spat out. Their relationship was admittedly a bit…odd. With all of the comfort of a pairing that had long-standing intimacy…sans the actual full intimate knowledge of one another. In part, it was due to dealing with such intense events right at the beginning. Otherwise, it had been Margot’s ability to see Aiden for what he was (and accept it) that smoothed over a great deal of initial hesitation. “…it was.” she murmured in response to his ‘targeted’ statement, though it came out of nowhere-- even Margot didn’t fully realize what she was saying until after she’d already said it. She turned to him and blinked a few times. “I can’t explain how I know that. I just…do.” she started, feeling a rush of anxiety at the realization that exactly what she was saying was true. “I’ve…felt it.” she tried to explain, holding her hands up to articulate with them, as if it would help. She only looked strained for words. “Sometimes that’s how it works. I don’t *see* something specifically, but I *feel* it. Like a dream.” Did he dream? She didn’t know. “I didn’t really realize it until you said it. But now I do. It’s targeted.” To who? At what? She didn’t know anything but the resounding truth of her statement. He caught her hand in the air and changed the subject. “I…what?” her head tilted. “Yes, of course.” she replied, softly. Margot really didn’t eat much regularly anyway. But she’d been diligent about her medicine. “Trust me, I’m well aware.” she replied, “I…it’s been the reason I’ve been on top of things.” she offered, albeit a bit meekly. Yes, she’d been sure to get well. She practically willed herself to full-health every second in order to be sure she had the energy to look after him. “*I’ll* pack the bags. You bathe and try to soothe your aches.” she corrected. The willoy seer would know what to pack-- given that she knew what would come to pass once they headed toward the manor. Best to over pack, they’d be there a while. As the once cool, porcelain forehead rest against hers, she could feel the dampness of water and blood (sweat) on his brow. She closed her eyes as he spoke, nodding against his forehead. “You’re not going to die at all.” she challenged, opening her eyes to watch his brown ones as a half-hearted smile played at the corner of her mouth. On the counter behind her were tubing, needles (apparently made for use on Vampires) and an assortment of other lifted supplies. Heprin was among them. It burned the veins going in and left a painful ache at the injection site, but it was a very effective anti-coagulant. “I had a feeling we’d need that.” she murmured. Not in Aiden’s case, she couldn’t see it. But in Eva’s, it was a possible solution. Margot lifted both hands to hold his prominent jawline and kissed him gently on the lips. Pulling back to survey him, she shook her head. “That hat looks ridiculous on you.” she observed, “I like it.”•••