driftfleet | (no subject)

Who: Robb & you!
Broadcast: Voice
Action: Mostly at the Blue Fish
When: Today

Network – Voice
[When Robb speaks his voice sounds like that of a sick old man above his eighties. In his life he hasn’t been sick often but when it strikes it mostly manages to floor him at least for a couple of days.]

If there is anyone still in possession of anything that used to belong to my sister Arya, I would like to ask you if you can bring them to me. I stay at the Blue Fish. My name is Robb Stark, I am in charge of security. I am also her oldest brother.

You have my thanks.

[To those who come by to hand over Arya’s stuff or want to run into him – The Blue Fish]
[Robb is waiting for you at the docking station, dressed in the uniform belonging to his job as head of security. The only abnormal thing about him is that he looks pale and has a running nose.

You will be thanked for your donation and if you’re lucky he’ll sneeze in your face as well.]

[To those who want to come visit to fret over Robb and/or is a resident on the Blue Fish]
[Most of the day Robb will be found in his bed with the lights off and his head tucked away underneath the blankets. He has messaged his captain about his sickness and prefers to sleep it off.

So come fuss. He’ll probably be grouchy about it.]

[Action – closed to Bran]
[After Robb has taken a shower and changed into different clothes he actually feels a bit better. At least, good enough to pay his younger brother a visit. Just to check if he is still here, on this bloody ship.

Robb knocks twice.]

Bran? [And another knock.] It is me, Robb. [Robb is sure that Bran probably knows that it is him but just in case.] I need to speak to you. [Or well, just see him. Just knowing that he is allright.] It is about Arya...ah...

[The rest of the words disappear into a loud sneeze.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Robb. It's Beverly.

[Pause.]

I'm back. I promise I won't stay long, I just want to check up on you.

You have returned?

[Robb sits up half and falls back into the bed right after.]

You are... [He closes his eyes briefly.] ...you are the maester. [He smiles, though. It is good to know she has come back.]

[Smiling softly at that, she slowly opens the door, steps into his room, drops down on her knees beside his bed and pulls out the tricorder.

Yes, I'm here, though it's been a long time for me.

[As she begins scanning him:]

How long have you been sick?

Where have you been...?

[There's genuine worry in his voice.]

You have not left a message... [He eyes the device with a bit of wariness.] Not for long... It is a fever... Not my death. [His death will be different.]

Atroma sent me home. [She rests a hand on his arm reassuringly.]I tried to leave letters just in case but I guess I hid them too well. But don't worry, I'm all right.

[The tricorder affirms his assessment - nothing deadly, and she snaps it shut before pulling out a water bottle and some medicine, two little pills that rest in the palm of her hand. She holds them out to Robb.]

Here, these pills will help lessen your fever and speed up your recovery. You'll have to swallow them whole, so take them with this water.

They did? They can...? [He shudders and huffs.] Can they bring Arya back...? They can... [Suddenly he feels awfully tired again and sinks back into the mattress of his bed, breathing heavily.] Gods...my sister is gone too...

[When she presents a water bottle he shifts again to take it from her. He is thirsty but those tiny balls she is holding...?]

Is that something like...milk of the poppy?

[Beverly's brow furrows at that information and she gives his arm a gentle squeeze.]

I am sorry she is gone. Whether they'll use their powers to bring her back or not, I can't say.

As for the medicine, it's not... It won't make you go to sleep like poppy does, but it is a painkiller still.

Theon said something awful will happen to her...is happening... [Suddenly he is awake and alert, sweat beading on his forehead as he sits up.] So she has to be found...brought back. It is important we stay together... Like you came back...

They have to. I have not wronged them.

[Finally he just plops down between the pillows again to gaze to the ceiling of his room.]

I have no pain. [Or, at the least, the pain he has is perfectly manageable.] I do not wish to kill it with your...pills.

[Neither has Beverly and yet they won't leave her be. But she doesn't comment on that, focusing instead on his medicine.]

That may be, but they also will reduce your fever and get you back on your feet sooner. So please, take them.

You do not answer my question! [Robb is busy working himself up.] I want to see my sister! This is not fair! They told me...Theon! [Eventually he stops his fussing to cough into his pillow.]

Do not talk about bloody pills when I know my sister is suffering back home.

[Frustrated, she raises her voice.]

Because I do not know the answer!

[And then... everything breaks down. Beverly's face simply crumples and her voice shakes as she struggles to hold back her tears. Again and again today she's reassured people she'd be all right, believed it even, but now all her emotions - her anger towards Atroma, her anxiety at leaving the Enterprise, her love for her son, the pain of losing him again - come crashing in. Again, more softly:]

I don't know. I don't know why they took your sister, just as I don't know why they took Katara from Sokka or me from my son twice now. If I could bring Arya back to you, I would, but I can't, just like I can't get back to Wesley. All I can do is be your doctor and I hope, your friend. So please, let me do this much. I know it's not enough but it's all I can do.

Don’t you modern folk know the answer to everything? Or magic? Don’t you all practice the dark arts as well?! You give me two pills and my fever will gone! And there are ships flying in the air! But no one knows how I can save my sister!

[Robb is not entirely aware of what he is saying. It tires him out but the words keep on coming from his mouth.]

Gods! [Finally he covers his face with his hands and kicks a couple of angry kicks under the sheets. He is so tired and finally the tension and anger subside.]

It is not your fault... [The words come late, maybe too late. He looks at her with a sudden tired look.] You should not cry... I have...I should not have said that. [Arya is gone. Like Winterfell. Like his own life. Like the North. Like his mother.] I will take your pills... My apologies...

Robb...

[It's heartbreaking to see him in so much emotional pain and hurts to know there is so very little she can do about it. She lets him vent his frustrations for however long it takes. Some of what he says annoys her - black magic! Hardly! - but it's nothing compared to what he's feeling right now.

As for the crying - well, stopping that is easier said than done. She shakes her head when he finishes speaking and for a moment she doesn't quite trust herself to talk. She has to take a deep breath before she can.]

I'm not crying because of what you said. I'm... just so very tired of feeling helpless.

[His muscles relax slowly while he can feel his heart hammering in his chest. He thinks of Arya, he thinks of what they told him. Fever or not, the guilt is almost beyond a simple feeling to him. It is something thick and heavy that has settled inside his body and won’t leave.

For once he wishes he had lived in that world of lies. Where he made promises and spoke of victories and plans in the future.]

You do what you can... We all do. And for some it is satisfying... And for others... I...

[Ah, yes, that point where his room spins a little around him...]

Mayhaps it is not satisfying for us... Our best...is not best enough...

[Beverly runs a gentle hand across his hot forehead, then smooths down his hair - little good that it does on curls like his. He fights and fights and goes in circles and she does not know what else to do to help.]

I know and you deserve so much better but please... Try not to let yourself get caught in a cycle of anger or despair. That leads to nowhere good.

[Her touch reminds him of his mother. Kind and soothing. A promise that one day, everything is going to be alright. He closes his eyes briefly and hums softly, his breathing evening out a little.]

Apologies...I am behaving like a child... [The words are soft and more a murmur than anything else.] You remind me of my mother... I miss her...

[And because it seems to help, she keeps stroking his hair.]

Shhh... just try to sleep. I'll be here.

Good...

[And it does help and Robb finally finds himself drifting off, his head full of memories of his mother.]