Work Text:
Kris fell to their knees, their breath running ragged as they held their stomach. Blood sprayed from their wound, and Kris thought they felt their guts begin spilling out.
“Kris!” Susie cried, finally noticing Kris’s injury. She moved like a lightning bolt and was by Kris’s side before they could blink. Susie helped lie Kris down and pulled off her vest, balling it up into a makeshift pillow. “C’mon, stay with me!” Susie begged. Kris struggled to smile. They’d lost a lot of blood, and were only losing more.
“Damn it,” Susie swore, “Stay with me, please!” Susie rubbed her hands together, green magic manifesting in her palms, “Goddamn it,” Susie hissed, “If only Ralsei were still up…” Susie pressed her hands against Kris’s abdomen; Kris winced and took a sharp breath.
“Shit, I’m sorry,” Susie apologized, but Kris shook their head.
“Don’t,” Kris assured, “just-” Kris pulled Susie’s hands off them for a moment, before slipping their fingers into the tear in their bodysuit and widening the hole.
“Thanks,” Susie said breathlessly, and she slid her fingers under the impossible cloth of the bodysuit, pushing her hands directly onto Kris’s skin. The sudden pressure on their injury made Kris choke.
“Sorry, sorry,” Susie again apologized, and Kris again shook their head, the ghost of a smirk touching the edges of their mouth. “Take this seriously!” Susie barked, “You’re dying!” Susie continued working as much magic as she could, but the best she could do was staunch the bleeding.
“God damn it,” Susie sputtered. She grit her teeth as she pushed herself even further, the tips of her fingers turning black as she began burning away her own Health. Kris knew the feel of Susie’s fingers better than they’d like to admit; they noticed Susie’s fingers blackening before Susie did.
Kris tried to push Susie away, to get her to slow down, to downplay their injury and save Susie’s energy. “Absolutely not, you little bastard,” Susie growled, “I’ve got spirit to burn; your guts are spilling out!” Kris grimaced and tried to keep pushing Susie away, but their strength failed them. “Whu-” Susie sputtered, “Shit! Stay with me!” Susie begged, but it was no use. Kris had lost too much blood; not enough to be surely fatal, but there was still a chance — One Susie was entirely unwilling to take.
Susie panicked and pushed herself beyond her limits, the burnt blackness growing up her arms as she forced Kris’s wound to close through sheer willpower. Susie’s mind was a whirlwind of emotion, and her mouth moved before she realized what she was saying.
“Kris! If you die here, I’ll fucking kill myself!”
Kris’s eyes, which had grown heavy and half-lidded, flew open, and they grabbed Susie’s wrists with all the strength they had, pressing her hands tighter against their skin. The wound began closing much, much faster; while their breath was still shallow, inhaling no longer caused Kris pain. Susie finally realized what she had said, and her mind briefly went blank with embarrassment. She was suddenly very glad Ralsei was unconscious.
Slowing down slightly, Susie used her left hand to hold the now nearly closed wound shut as she used her right hand to fully seal it. The crisis finally, stressfully averted, Susie collapsed next to Kris and rolled over onto her back, her breath coming ragged and heavy. “Don’t scare me like that again,” Susie demanded, and Kris nodded.
“Sorry,” Kris mumbled, and Susie sighed.
“No, I-” Susie said, sighing, “I’m not mad at you, I, just-” Susie stopped herself mid-sentence; it was almost imperceptible, but she could tell Kris was laughing. “You little shit,” Susie grumbled, but she couldn’t find it in herself to be mad.
Susie stared into the pitch black sky above them. She wondered what was going on in the Light World right now. Susie closed her eyes and tried to imagine what Noelle was doing, but her mind came up blank. She was exhausted.
Susie sighed and opened her eyes, holding a burnt hand up to examine the damage. She could still flex her fingers, which was good, but much of the feeling had gone, which was bad; it’d be pretty hard to swing an axe if she could barely feel it in her hands. Susie sighed again and looked to Kris for a witty comment, and found them asleep, breath kitten-soft.
Susie smiled softly before looking away. Right now, Kris was alive, and that was what mattered…