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[Jun had been to the hospital earlier, as a caring brother making sure Harumasa was okay after the mission. And that had been his main focus, acting as support and being there for him.

That said, Jun was well aware it was the same hospital Wriothesley and the others had taken Ragna to. So, during that trip, he took one break from his brotherly duties- asking Belle and his other siblings to keep an eye on Harumasa as he used the bathroom. In truth... he had gone to the nurses station, and looked through their records to find out which room Ragna was in.

A few days later, giving Ragna enough chance to rest enough to become coherent again, he'll return. It took some doing to get into the hospital undetected - teleporting, shapeshifting, using the stealth power Varian's gift granted him. It's not like they let shrouded figures into the front doors of a hospital after all.

But, it paid off in the end. For Shroud now stood in the darkness of Ragna's hospital room- speaking up to let his presence be known]

Ragna.

Edited 2025-03-14 13:41 (UTC)

[It took a few days for Ragna to be anything but delirious. He still needed to spend one more day in the ICU, but hopefully they'll get him the hell out of this space at least. It's creepy and unsettling as hell and he's had enough of ghosts for one lifetime...

... even if the quiet was really weird now. He didn't have it in him to unpack this all the way right now.

Unfortunately, speaking of creepy shit hearing his name just as he was about to nod off for the night after taking the stupid medications made him practically jump halfway off his hospital bed with a high pitched yelp because UM HELLO GRIM REAPER THAT'S HIS SHTICK AND HE'S STILL ALIVE FUCK OFF???

But... then he sees who it is. No less alarming, but at least it's an asshole he knows.]

Jesus FUCKING Christ, what the hell are you doing in here?!

[Shroud gives no outward reaction to Ragna's panic... even if internally, the saner parts of his brain are recognizing that oh yeah, that is a reasonable response to this. Not that having him recognize that will do any good]

There's a matter I need to address with you.

[Duh!]

It seems you've already regained some of your energy. I'm glad.

[If anything, Ragna screaming and swearing is a GOOD sign!!]

Yeah, nothing like a fucking fight or flight response to put pep in my step...

[Asshole. With that adrenaline settling though, he sounded a lot more exhausted and groggy. But it is still good that he's got enough energy to give this shrouded freak shit about it.]

... What is it?

[He just gives a simple shrug to the first part, instead occupying himself with reaching into a deep pocket of his uniform... and pulling out a blue colored tome.

Or an azure tome, if you will]

The Blazblue. It's been sealed away in this book.

Seeing as it was your arm, I thought I'd get your input on where it should go.

Edited 2025-03-14 14:28 (UTC)

[You might call it an Azure Grimoire, even.

Ragna just stared at it for a while, scrutinizing. He knew better than anyone the damage that thing could do, regardless of the form it took. And now the whole damn town knew. Honestly Ragna was just glad the damn thing was sealed away somehow. Even he couldn't really sense much from it in this form.]

It's not exactly something that can be destroyed easily, otherwise that'd be the only option. And I don't give a shit what new leaf the Black Order says it's turning, I don't want it anywhere near them.

[He didn't want to taint the whole goddamn town with seithr after all. As Ragna gave it some thought, there was one person with the power to monitor it properly that he trusted.]

Give it to Venti. He'll know how to handle it, and I trust him to not let it fall into the wrong hands.

[He listens quietly and.... he does give a slight nod about the Black Order, since he's in agreement there. While he's willing to give the new Order a chance, that doesn't mean he's quite ready to entrust them with a weapon of mass destruction.

The ultimate solution Ragna comes up with though... it's a good one]

... Mm, a wise choice. Very well, I'll deliver it to Venti. In his hands, you won't need to fear it harming anyone else.

Good. I know the kind of damage that thing can do. If you guys left it any longer, I can't say the town would be left standing.

[Shroud could sense that, certainly. And Ragna only bothered to emphasize that because of his first hand experience in his past and current lives. And to really drive the point home.]

Mm....I got that impression.

[He could sense that, not to mention it sure was an actual black hole while it was manifested. That can't be good for any town to be around.

He'll put the book back in the pocket he had stored it. At least it won't be in his hands for much longer. It filled him with unease to be hauling it around.]

I owed you a favor, so I'll be waiving my usual fee. We're even now.

[Imagine having it attached to you for over a decade. But Ragna raised a brow. Owed him a favor?]

I don't remember you owing me shit. Just because I can't meet your rates, doesn't I'm not that much of an asshole to cash in something I don't have.

[His Mom taught him better than that.]

[He makes a soft "heh" sound]

You helped someone I cared about once.

A life for a life feels like a fair exchange wouldn't you say? Certainly enough to cover a 10k base fee.

[... (nat 1 lmao).]

... Blade?

[That's gotta be who this guy's talking about, right??]

You meet him at a "crazy ass" convention, or something?

[They're both unhinged in different flavors and really fucking weird and dedicated to one specific thing. One's just got blacksmithing and the other's got Jesus. Either way, he's really feeling the many medications he's on since the initial scare is gone.]

Whatever you say, though... not gonna leave someone behind I care about... [You can tell the meds are getting to him given his emotional honesty right now. His endless loyalty.]

[ . . .

Yeah those must be some crazy strong meds he's on. So he's just.... not going to deny or agree with the statement. Let Ragna believe what he wants]

... I should leave you to rest.

Do you have any other questions before I go?

[He'll figure it out eventually, he's starting to nod off again.]

... You're around the fortress right? ... Tell Jun that Ragna asked... if he could make a cake for March 7th... kinda ruined her day with all this... I'll pay for it...

[He's seconds away from falling asleep, so it's probably a good place for Shroud to leave anyway.]

[He.... He just got commissioned to deliver a message to himself. That's... that's a new one.

Well. Alright then. Like he's going to turn down the easiest chance to get paid. Those stress-purchased starbucks caramel frappes aren't free. ]

Very well, I shall get in contact with him. An invoice will be sent once the price is decided.

Rest well, Ragna.

[With a flash of blue, he teleports away]

ic contact: kaisou

Action | Hospital, late at night couple days after the labryinth

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