Check Up |Done|

[Emby Foster]

Emby pushed herself up from the ground. She felt empty and she was still nauseous. She stepped away from her bile. She looked around for something to clean up her mess but when she didn't find anything, she found nothing wrong with just leaving it. She left the room she had run off too and went back to Sulley, wondering if he was dead now. Or a robot, despite Lucian's word that he would not do that. Maybe there was a little luck in Freakopolis and he was fine, more or less. Hopefully, he was just fine, nothing more or less.

She stepped into the room, her breathing picking up. What would she do without Sulley? He was her hope to get out of here. She closed her eyes for a moment, willing her fears away. She focused on Jacob's face. He always calmed. It didn't work though. Something was unsettling about using Jacob's face to calm her down over Sulley. She was unneedingly stressing herself out. She opened her eyes and stepped inside.

[Sulley]

Sulley lay on the cold hard table, his eyelids fluttering over eyes that couldn't focus. The ceiling fan above hummed as it turned in its endless circles, each arm an indistinguishable whir. Dizziness swept over Sulley. He felt as if he needed to puke but there was a strong feeling of emptiness within his stomach. He hadn't eaten in over twenty-four hours.

Grinding his teeth through the nausea that threatened to upend him on the floor, Sulley sat up. He tried it slowly but his arms shook, wanting to give out. The second try was better. He swung up right, shutting his eyes tight, frowning through the pounding in his head. Or was it on his head? It felt like it.

Sulley' eyes snapped open when Emby came into the room. Concern for himself vanished and replaced itself with a desperate urge to ensure the girl was okay. He scrutinized everything, from her skin to her clothes, ensuring that not a single strand of her hair had been bothered by the robot man. Lucian. The name brought bile to his mouth and an enlightening feeling of saving grace. Sulley was wary in his gratefulness.

"Are you..." he brought a hand up to his head to steady himself as he swung his legs off the table. "Where is he?"

[Emby Foster]

Emby's face fell as she looked at Sulley. True, he did look better but not by much. He had been dying out and Lucian had just barely brought him back. It was enough though. She purposefully chose the left side of the bed to walk over to, skirting the maimed and dead bodies that sat in their own, red puddles. She was surprised slightly that Lucian hadn't taken them.

She stopped by Sulley's bed. He opened his mouth, stopped mid question. She reached out her hand, hoping to help steady him but didn't know if he was still sharp. She brought her hand back. She wasn't sure if he was safe anymore. Her light in Freakopolis had grown dark in front of her eyes. She tried to shake away her fear, almost distaste for Sulley. She saw the concern in his eyes. She wasn't like the nurse and doctor. She wasn't dispensable.

Was she?

She grimaced as he tried to get up. She risked touching him, not sure just how much that might cost her, and reached for his shoulder, hoping to keep him down. "I don't know. I didn't even notice him leaving. I was...in another room. You should lay down," she told him, her words coming out in a rush.

[Sulley]

Sulley saw her hand reaching for his shoulder before it contacted skin. He made sure, although it was already, focus on his hair. Her hand was cool against his burning skin. A small reminder of the real world.

His eyes drifted to his midsection. His shirt had been removed by the robot. A recently patched scar cut his stomach in two. Sulley's hand brushed the stitches, making his body flinch away as if it weren't a part of him. He should lay down.

"No." His hand found Emby's wrist and removed those cold fingers from his skin. He wouldn't lay down. He wouldn't sit back and be the weak one and force the real weak one to be strong. Sulley didn't back down regardless of whether or not his innards were now electronic. Not even if his body felt foreign to him. Not in a million years.

Sulley stood on his feet. He swayed. His weight seemed to have increased. Standing made him aware of the metallic buzz humming softly. Softly, softly. He opened his mouth and the sound increased. Only those with excellent hearing would have heard the machinery's hum. Sulley's eyes widened. He dug his fist into his gut, just below the stitching, and instead of pushing squishy innards a hard object met his knuckle.

Sulley gulped.

"Come." He tried to shake away the dawning doom by slinging his arm over Emby's shoulders. It wasn't to lean on her, but to keep her close and guided as he wound through the infirmary halls. The place seemed barren. Sulley kept his eyes sharp on the scene, though his mind floated in other universes.

[Emby Foster]

He was hot. Her face focused on where their skin met. What was wrong with him? It almost didn't cross her mind but she too had suffered with a fever once. Did Sulley not get the cure to the virus? She could see him refusing the small needle. She grimaced. Was that why he was here? Is that why a doctor and nurse were dead? Her mind swam in the possibilities.

She snapped out of her thoughts as he pushed her hand away. "Sulley!" She took a breath. She couldn't lose control around him. For once, she had to keep it together or she may really lose something. Her life. "Please lay down," she murmured. She went to at least try and push him down but his arm was suddenly around her.

She thought she was dead for a moment but as her feet fell behind her, she realized he was dragging her along somewhere. She managed to set herself right and keep pace with him. Her breathing had rapidly picked up and her eyes flashed around the hall and at Sulley. "Stop for a...moment. Please!" She gasped and sputtered. Dots appeared in front of her vision and less and less oxygen was making it into her lungs.

[Sulley]

Sulley stopped abruptly when he registered Emby's desperate plea. His arm left her shoulder and his hands took her biceps, forcing her to face him. His eyes grew large--observant--as he stuck his face in hers and examined her more closely.

There wasn't anything wrong. She wasn't bleeding. Sure, she was breathing hard. She looked a bit woozy. But Sulley didn't know what to do. He whispered carefully, as if speaking to a child,

"What's the matter?"

[Emby Foster]

Emby closed her eyes as Sulley jerked her to a stand still. A well needed stop. Her breathing picked up however as he grabbed her arms, restraining her. He's not going to hurt you," she told herself and her breathing slowed slightly. She opened her eyes, focusing in on his face as he gently spoke to her. She shook her head, hoping to silent him. She needed to hear him breath, anything to slow her own breathing down.

She picked up the steady rhythm of his inhalations, mimicking them forcing herself to calm down. She pulled away from him carefully. Her arms hurt a bit from his grip. "Nothing. I- I'm fine. We can keep going now," she told him, lifting her hands to her eyes and wiping away the rim of water on her bottom lid.

"I'm fine," she repeated, trying to reassure herself more then Sulley.

[Sulley]

A considering man might have paused a moment longer to find the root of the problem.

Sulley took her word and turned, hurrying through the infirmary corridors as before. This time he didn't touch her. She would be able to keep pace on her own or be lost around a corner. The walls had begun to feel oppressing for the man. Knowing that metallic claws could be waiting to grab him just around the corner had him sharpening his arms and sticking out a head to peer before plunging down the halls.

Reaching a familiar area--the first room in the infirmary, Sulley stopped and faced the wall. He focused solely on his arm, stretching and shaping the blade that was his skin. He inhaled deeply, turned his hand to a fist, and charged at the wall. A war cry escaped his mouth as he brought the full force of his fist into the wall. A hole was made where the punch went through, but it took a moment for the surrounding area to catch up. First a crack, then a slight crumble, and then the area around the hole was falling away.

Sulley impatiently ripped at the wall, forcing a bigger hole, one that he could step through. A evening sky met him. His eyes burned. Artificial light my ass. Even the stimulated sun could turn you blind.

He crouched, examining the land around his side of the infirmary, as he waiting for Emby to emerge. Sulley did his best to ignore his sense of uneasiness that he knew wasn't coming from anything beyond his own stomach.

[Emby Foster]

Emby was a bit surprised as Sulley turned away from her and kept walking but really, it was all for the better. He already thought she was weak, she didn't feel like proving his theory today. Her panic attacks were definitely a weak spot that Sulley didn't need to know about. She took a long breath and jogged to catch up to him.She wrapped her arms around herself and followed a step behind him, not really paying attention but rather trusting Sulley's guidance. She stopped in surprise, almost bumping into him. She watched, eyes wide as he went in for the kill. Of the wall, that is. She rose an eyebrow, watching the little hole, wondering it's purpose.

It was impressive. Sure but really, destroying the build- As the wall cracked and gave way to Sulley's power. She followed Sulley out of the wall, wondering if now was a good time for questioning. Well, she was going to ask away whether it was or not.

"Where are we going?" she asked, examining his crouch. She pulled the air around her as she looked around, wondering if there was an immediate threat.

[Sulley]

Sulley looked up at Emby, noticing there seemed a change in the girl--she must be in her element--no pun intended--and forced his hard gaze on her. She was a pest, really. Something weak and innocent that he felt an uncanny urging to preserve. No one else stirred this kind of protectiveness in him. Sure, the Rebellion girls had his arm of support, but with Emby it was different. In an annoying way. Like an itch.

"We?" He stood slowly, letting his eyes drift. "You don't have anywhere safe to go? I don't want that Lucian guy around you." It was an order to her as much as it was a spoken thought. "If I have to drag you with me I will, but otherwise..." Sulley cocked his head, listening, not realizing his rudeness. Not that he'd care if he had.

[Emby Foster]

Emby stared back at him, wondering if she was threat. Or at least, his gaze was almost too intense. She pulled the air tighter around her, like a blanket. When he spoke, it was like a slap in the face. She lost control of the air and it whipped around her for a moment before pushing away. She clearly understood the command under the words. She wasn't sure why it really bothered her all that much except that it did. Maybe it was because he didn't treat her like the other Rebellion girls.

"Yeah, like you wouldn't want Mara around him either?" A touch of sarcasm. There was also a hint of jealousy, but only if you were paying attention. All the stories she heard about Sulley involved his infamous Second. "Why did you even bother letting me in the Rebellion?" She spat at him, moving past him and continuing on. And no, she didn't feel like there was anywhere safe. Hadn't she explained that when they first met. And yeah, she didn't want to be around Lucian either but she managed to bump into him everywhere she went anyways. And no, she wasn't going to express those thoughts to Sulley. It didn't seem he really cared.

[Sulley]

Sulley's eyed widened in alarm as the wind picked up. That was unnatural. It took him two clicks to realize it was Emby's doing, and then he relaxed. He wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, but he did notice that things like that happened around the young girl. Almost as if it were a result of some inner qualm she was having. It was likely there was nothing he could do about it, so Sulley chose to ignore moments like these. He intentionally scoured the direction opposite of the girl, letting her compose herself.

Her sudden outburst took him off guard.

"Yeah, like you wouldn't want Mara around him either?" Sulley was taken aback. That didn't happen often. Neither did he ever give swift responses This time he began to.

"Emby--" But she was quick to press her point. He stood there blinking as she walked past. You might have thought he'd forgotten about the situation at hand. That wasn't likely. Sulley was still as wary of his surroundings as always. Nothing ever took him off guard because of it. Except this.

He turned slowly, watching her walk away. Nothing really came to mind. Was he supposed to feel angry? Bitter? What was the matter with her? It wasn't often that he thought of the way women worked, but he was aware of the fact that sometimes girls had "times" in their "lives" when they felt like "the world was against them". Given, he could address that possibility, but there was no way in hell he could ever understand it. Ever.

And so he got to thinking. A dangerous thing, mind you. When Sulley thought too hard about any one thing...it never turned out well. Malicious suggestions would crowd his mind and then unfortunate things happened. He'd been thinking too much before his wife had been murdered. Before his brother had died.

Sulley didn't want to see this girl hurt. Was that why he let her in the Rebellion? Because from the day he met her he had this strange obsession with her safety? That didn't seem right. It was as if there was something deeper. A connection, perhaps. If anyone did something to her he would kill them. Simple as that. They would die, or he would die trying to wipe them off the face of this planet. It wasn't a decision he made. It's not like he vowed to protect her. He just...would. No half-assed robot was going to harass Emby, and that was that.

"Come back." He said, deathly quiet. She wouldn't have heard. "Get back here." Sulley said louder. It didn't matter whether she obeyed. He was already moving towards her, his stride ridiculously long to catch her in minimal steps. She was turned away, but that didn't matter either; Sulley wrapped his arms around the girl--certainly not gently--and pulled her backwards into his chest. He held her tightly, breathing slowly and loudly, his mouth next to her ear.

"Don't." Sulley whispered. "Just....don't."

[Emby Foster]

Emby's hands began to shake as she walked away from Sulley. This was dangerous. This was stupid. She should turn her little behind around and apologize for being an idiot. However, she didn't. She kept walked, chin held high and fists clenched tight. Water piled over her bottom lid but she refused to cry over a man that didn't care about her at all. She refused to cry over Sulley. It'd be like crying over a lost pet rock. At least, she told herself that.

She didn't even hear him call after her. She just wished she could fly. She had half a mind to start running but running away from Sulley felt futile. She knew already she'd come back, apologize for her outburst, though she wouldn't mean it, and beg to be able to join the Rebellion again. As she went to wipe away the water blurring up her vision, she heard his quick approach behind her. She stopped just as his arms came around her.

Her eyes widened, wondering what was going on. His gentle words and rough hands didn't match up. The second time today, she though Sulley was going to kill her. It seemed she couldn't be more wrong. She didn't move. "Don't what?" she asked, a bit of left over edge from her anger still in her words.

[Sulley]

It would be so easy. All he would have to do was sharpen his arms and squeeze a little tighter. She'd slide into two halves. There would be blood on his clothes but he could wash them in the river. He'd leave her body to rot as a reminder. It wouldn't hurt him. Nothing hurt Sulley.

It made perfect sense. If he knew he was going to fail in protecting her, then why not just kill her himself and keep the satisfaction from his enemies? From Lucian? The itch would go away if she was dead. He wouldn't care anymore. He wouldn't need to. And it would be so easy. So easy.

Sulley shut his eyes tightly and jounced the girl. You might have thought he had a knife to her throat or a gun to her head. His thoughts suppressed him. Seeing nothing but darkness helped clear his mind. Within seconds Sulley was free of thoughts once more. Remnants of his bloodlust clung on to the edges of his being. He probably wouldn't be relived until he'd killed someone or cut something up. His body quivered for it.

"I don't know." Sulley let his arms fall to his sides, though his head lingered near hers and he couldn't help but catch the scent of her hair.

That's when a sharp pain began in his stomach. Something wasn't right. He could hear it in the machinery which controlled his innards. Like something was malfunctioning. He wanted to apply pressure and double over. Maybe a good roar would ease the feeling. He needed to be somewhere dark. Comfortable. Anywhere but yards from the infirmary with a girl he couldn't understand.

Sulley stepped back, swaying. His hand rested on Emby's shoulder without his knowledge, keeping him erect. He was hardly aware of her. Unusual.

"Take me to your cell." It wasn't a question.

[Emby Foster]

Emby fell against him, not sure what else she could do. She still didn’t feel safe but she did trust Sulley, a trust she couldn’t explain. It was much like his need to protect her. She bent forward as he jounced her. Did he mean to make it so painful. A moment later, he let go. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. Well, she did but it was too conflicting. Happy and disappointed. Unsafe yet oddly at peace. It was too much to handle. She wanted to just keep walking, continue on as if he had never caught on to her but she couldn’t. She couldn’t leave him for some reason.

“That makes two of us,” she replied softly, remaining still. She could feel his presence directly behind her. She wondered what would happen if she stepped forward.

Well for one, he would have landed on the ground and not her shoulder. She spun around in surprise. It felt as if he was falling forward. She reached her arms out and grabbed his shoulders. Pain was etched all over his face and immediately, her eyes dropped down to his stomach. “What did he do to you?!” She asked, eyes wide. Lucian promised her he was going to save Sulley, not cause him pain.

Emby raised her eyes to Sulley’s, searching them and wishing she could find the answers in them. She nodded her head. She wrapped her arm around his torso and started to walk. “Can you walk?” she asked, after thinking maybe it’d be best if she just risked another panic attack and floated him back on air.