Dream - [002]
((WARNING! This dream involves huge SPOILERS for Digital Devil Saga 2!))
It took a long while for Sera to finally manage to open her eyes, and even when she did, she still was extremely weak and groggy. She woke up to the sound of the beeping machines that were hooked up to her, carefully monitoring her physical status. She tried to remember how she had gotten here in the first place... The fact that she had passed out in the first place was a very good clue… She had blacked out while talking to God again.
It was no use… No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t manage to talk to God for more then two minutes. Tears of frustration built up in her eyes. She was trying so hard, but it was no good! Every time she talked to God, it felt like her head would burst… It was made up of far too much information for her to handle. At this rate, she’d never be able to hold out for ten minutes... Serph wouldn’t take her on a boat…
Suddenly, she felt someone place a gentle hand on her arm. She jolted a bit in surprise, but she quickly saw that it was only Nurse Argilla. The nurse’s concerned frown quickly turned into a gentle smile.
“Good morning. Are you feeling a little better now?” She asked sweetly. Sera nodded, but she didn’t really feel up to replying yet. Argilla helped her sit up, and they went through their usual check ups. Sera always liked Argilla. Since she had never had any siblings, Argilla felt like the closest thing to her big sister. Even when Sera was feeling her worst, Argilla was always there to take care of her, and she was a lot of fun to talk to.
Something was weird today though… As young as she was, Sera’s always been a pretty sharp girl, and she could tell that something else was behind her smile today. She clearly knew something that Sera didn’t.
“I think that you’re going to have a visitor sometime soon.” Argilla said while taking her blood pressure… She probably would be able to notice how Sera’s heart leapt at the mention of it.
“Really?” Sera chirped. Her energy spiked up a little, even if she still felt a bit weak. The way Argilla was smiling made her completely certain that this “mystery visitor” was going to be Serph!
There was a knock on her door, and Sera sat up as straight as she could with an excited smile on her face.
“Sera? I’m coming in.” If it was even possible, Sera went paler then she already was. That was definitely not Serph’s voice, and unfortunately, she knew exactly whose voice it was. Instinctively, she scooted back a little, to try to stay away from the door as much as possible, even as Argilla tried to calm her down… Just then, someone who looked shockingly familiar to a certain red-haired man who many residents of Somarium might recognize walked in. There were some striking differences in his appearance though. The nametag on his long white coat clearly identified him as Doctor Heat O'Brian. There was a big cardboard box in his hands. “Here. I brought you something...”
“I-I’m ok!” Sera cried immediately before he could finish. She tried to bring her knees up to curl and hide her face from him. He always looked so angry, and he was so mean to Serph… and of course, as her doctor, he kept putting her through painful procedures ‘for her own good.’ That big box he was holding did not feel like a good sign at all. It was unfamiliar, and usually, unfamiliar things meant new medical treatments. It didn’t matter how weak she felt right now. She didn’t want to go through it. “Please don’t...!”
Argilla already was rubbing her back comfortingly; trying to reassure her that Dr. Heat wasn’t there to hurt her. Sera had heard that line before… It was a very standard tactic that some people used just to calm her down before they suddenly launched her into some terrible ordeal. It wasn’t normal for Argilla to say that though…
She tensed as she heard Dr. Heat come up to the side of her bed. Sera didn’t want to look up. The longer she didn’t look up, the longer she wouldn’t have to deal with the terrible reality of having to live through yet another painful medical procedure. Why? Why was she the only one who had to go through all of this? Tears gathered up in her eyes as she shut them tightly, trying to block out everything…
The bed directly next to her dipped slightly. She thought that it was Dr. Heat sitting down for a moment… Until she felt something warm gently nudging against her knees. Cautiously, she opened one eye to peek… To see that there was suddenly a small and fluffy little black cat rubbing its cheek against her legs.
Carefully, Sera opened up her other eye, straightened up, and gently straightened her legs again. She was far too surprised by the odd situation for it to fully register yet. The cat jerked away from her knees as she moved them, but quickly decided that it would be much more comfortable if it climbed up onto Sera’s lap. It turned its face up to stare at Sera with its big bright eyes. Sera was so focused on it that they were almost nose to nose. It seemed to deem her worthy, because it quickly curled up and settled down, its tail touching its nose. Shyly, she reached out a hand and hesitated a moment before scratching behind its ear, which was strangely white instead of black like the rest of the cat. It thumped its tail lightly, and she could feel the rumble of its purring. She was overjoyed! She had never gotten the chance to pet a cat before.
“It'll keep you company.” At that, Sera finally looked up at Dr. Heat. The cardboard box was now sitting, fully opened and completely empty, on the bed next to him. Sera had never seen him look so… Gentle before. He was smiling, only slightly. He almost seemed a little sad… This was a look that she would always remember. It was probably the first time she realized that Heat wasn’t just a scary doctor. He was really a good person, it was just kind of hard to see it beyond his scary face…
“R-Really? You mean I can keep it?” She quickly had the cat cuddled up to her chest. It mewled in annoyance at being disturbed, but it quickly calmed down again as Sera kept petting and scratching him. It was so warm and fluffy… It felt really good to have him close. They just couldn’t take him away! If she was already shocked enough by Heat’s expression before, she would be even more shocked when he smile lost it’s hint of sadness upon seeing her cuddling the cat.
“Of course.” Was all he said in reply. Sera couldn’t remember the last time she was this happy. She grinned and rocked her new friend back and forth gently against her chest in joy.
“Oh, thank you!” Sera cried, “Thank you so much!”
Even if it didn't last for very long, it was the first time Sera didn’t shy away from Dr. Heat, and it was definitely the first time that she ever smiled at him like that.
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Sera was curled up on her side, snugly wrapped up in her blankets. When she woke up, she was so warm and comfortable that she didn't really want to get out of bed. She wasn't remembering that the memory that had just played out in her head would be broadcast to everyone.