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Stein leaned over Crona's mangled torso, eyes narrowed and hand steady as he slipped stitches into the pale skin. He breathed out as another stitch went in.
Crona had sure taken a beating, and Stein went through all the measures to make sure Medusa's dark magic hadn't harmed him in any way.
Well, other that the gaping hole going all the way through his stomach, but that wasn't induced by magic.
Black blood would be hell to get out of his coat, that was for sure.
Stein, during the surgery, didn't feel any particular feeling towards Crona, he was just a patient in that moment. It was best to put feelings aside about someone while you were trying to keep them from dying.
Afterwards, when he had finished cleaning and stitching the wound and gave Crona an iv drip, he talked mildly with Marie, the adrenaline finally wearing off.
Marie sat next to Crona's bed, one hand in his hair and the other on his arm, mothering him as if he was her son.
Stein contemplated Marie as he dug around in his pockets for a lighter and a cigarette. That is, if he hadn't misplaced them in his frantic state of mind.
Marie had a healing wave, he knew it first hand. Images of her glowing form were practically glued to his mind, and he swore that some of the warmth from her healing soul was still coursing through his veins.
Stein pulled out the lighter first, quickly finding the tiny cardboard box of lights soon afterwards. He stuck one in his mouth and lit it, inhaling the smoke drowsily and letting it slowly drift from his mouth in wisps.
Stein cocked his head at Marie, picking up on her gentle cooing and feeling the way she was practically bathing the whole room in her soul wavelength.
It wasn't...unpleasant, and Stein supposed Crona could gain something from this in his injured state, but the warmth left an alien feeling on his skin, bristling the hair on the back of his neck and turning his skin to goose flesh.
Marie turned to him, nose wrinkled in disgust.
"Are you seriously smoking in a doctors office?"
He shrugged loosely and turned away.
Marie huffed,"Have some decency why don't you..."
Stein plucked the smoking paper from his lips and sighed.
"This is probably the most decent thing I've done in these past few days," he looked at Marie with a smile, meeting her embarrassed eyes,"Funny, isn't it?"
She tried to keep his gaze, but looked back down towards Crona. Silence stretched between them, punctuated by the puffs of Stein and his cigarette.
Marie clenched her fingers tightly and edged her gaze to his feet, keeping her eyes down.
"Why did you think I was dead?" He looked up in surprise, and Marie was inclined to meet his gray eyes with her golden one.
"When we came for you, you said that I was dead," she pushed her shoulders back and furrowed her brows. She refused to let the terrified tears roll down her face as she continued,"What happened, Stein?"
Her sweet voice turned into a worried one, and the way she said his name in that ridiculously soft and sweet tone sent a shudder down his spine.
No one had ever talked to him like that,"I uh...what?" He shook his head,"No, no...I understand your question."
He ignored the way his face heated up for an instant, blaming it on the stuffy room full of beeping machines and a healing wave.
"When. I was uncontrollably mad I saw you...." he twirled the cigarette in his nimble fingers before sticking it back in his mouth,"You killed yourself, Marie. You jumped off of our roof and died."
Marie pressed her lips together and held her breath in before releasing it,"O-oh..."
He looked at her sagged shoulders and sad eye that was still on him,"It was just something my deluded mind made up, or something that Medusa planted in the snake to gain an advantage,"
Stein spun his chair around and looked down at the papers on his desk without really seeing them,"It's nothing."
It was all he could do to keep his voice from quavering.
Stein...Stein cared for Marie, and still didn't know how to process it. It was the norm for weapons and Meisters to have a close bond with each other, but Stein was afraid that he had become to attached to someone who was probably...weirded out by him, scared of him. Friendship was a dangerous game for the professor.
He thought about the radio, so loud with noise that it had rattled his bones, and how she hadn't turned away from his madness, but how she accepted it, showed him how to accept it, and brought him back.
In the past, Spirit was able to do that, and look at them now.
He crumpled his cigarette into the ashtray to his left and smirked slightly.
Marie wasn't like anyone else, she was sweet. Maybe he could deal with this attachment, and maybe she wasn't as disgusted as he thought.
Stein thought back to how pleasant Marie had been towards him on their first day together as they watched the children play basketball. It was probably just his cynical nature, or his habit to distrust others until they proved their sincerity to him that made him wary of Marie. You never know who the bullies are these days.
Marie had never actually turned away from him, and she never tried to run away when he was immobilized by the madness crumbling his thoughts and scattering his brain.
Marie...he looked down...Marie was probably one of the best weapons he'd ever had, the way their souls worked together provided greatly for both ends.
Apparently Dearh knew this as well. As soon as Marie was assigned to work with him, Stein had the slightest of suspicions, and that day they were proved correct. How Marie had used her healing wavelength as proof enough.
Stein spun around again, crossing his arms on top of the back rest and taking in Marie with an air of curiosity as she looked down at Crona with worry.
Her fingers glowed gold, and Stein smiled.
What and intriguing weapon, using her wavelength to heal instead of destroy. Marie would be a good weapon for Stein.
As Stein thought over possible long term living arrangements for two, a quiet groan roused him from his thought.
Marie clutched onto Cronas slender hand and glanced at Stein hopefully.
Stein rolled over to the other side of the bed, Crona's eyes dimly acknowledging him as they followed him across the room.
Stein fiddled with the iv bag before placing a hand on Crones shoulder.
"Hello, Crona, how are you feeling?" Crona closed his eyes, turning his face up,"It's really bright...he mumbled.
After a moment he opened his eyes a crack again,"What happened?" His words blurred together, and Stein blamed the pain medications.
Stein glanced over at Marie who shared a worried look with him before he began.
"Medusa speared you all the way through, but I've got you patched up all nicely. It'll scar, but I'm sure you can understand why that's okay."
Crona closed his eyes and furrowed his brows,"Yes...yes..." He shifted and pushed himself up with his elbows, groaning, before trying to sit up.
Stein helped to support him, keeping his hands away from the wounds, and Marie moved the pillows for Crona to lay against.
He winced and sighed,"It hurts," Crona opened his eyes and tried to experimentally pat his stomach, but Stein grabbed his hand lightly.
"Try not to disturb it, Crona," Crona looked at his hand, swallowed, and looked up at Steins face.
Well, that was where his face was directed, but his eyes were glued to the ground.
He wrinkled his nose and crinkled his eyes, tears leaking down his cheeks. Stein felt him shaking under his light grip and let go.
"P-professor Stein," he stammered,"I'm really really sorry that I did this to you and I-I never wanted to do it but I just, I just got to attached and how was I supposed to leave after making all these friends?" He choked out and pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes,"She...she made me do it I had no choice, oh professor Stein I'm sorry! I made you go crazy and that...that's definitely not okay..."
Crona's words were still running together as he stammered and sobbed and Stein barely understood his crying and slurring for a few moments , but he understood the tone.
Stein chuckled and Crona finally looked at him, actually looked at him, with guilty and puffy red eyes.
"Crona, if you're to understand one thing about be, it's that I'm always mad. No matter how sane I seem," he pat his chest,"It's always there. Always."
Crona nodded, still looking worried,"And I'm not one to hold grudges easily, Crona."
That was partly true. He wouldn't hold this against Crona, the young man had enough anxiety and fear in him to last a lifetime, but Stein was excellent at holding grudges. Back when he was Spirits Meister, if he even heard wind of bad mouthing about his weapon, he could hold onto that for weeks while he planned on how to teach the bad mouthed a lesson.
Anyways, Crona was sincere and Stein understood, embarrassingly, first hand how manipulative medusa was.
Plus, Crona took on the heavy task of bringing Stein back. He was even prepared to kill his own mother for the professor.
Crona nodded weakly, laying against the pillows and looking at the iv inside his arm. He looked at the ceiling,"I don't know how to deal with this," his eyes widened and suddenly he looked at Marie and then to Stein.
"W-wait where's Maka?"
Stein looked down and sighed,"She's currently fighting the Kishin with Kid and Black Star."
Crona breathed in heavily before moving as quick as he could, which was surprisingly fast considering his injuries, to get out of the bed.
Stein stopped him again,"Crona, you've just been speared like a shish kabob," Crona winced at the comparison,"You need to rest so as to disturb the wound as little as possible."
Crona struggled meekly,"Ill rest afterwards! Maka is my friend, I need to be there for her like she was for me!"
Crona's insistent tone and fierce eyes surprised Stein. Crona really had taken a turn for the better, he noted.
Stein looked at Marie, who shrugged as if to say,'you're the doctor,' which he was. Stein looked down, sighing. He looked up at Crona, whose face was still red and whose eyes still had tears pooling in the corners.
"I guess I can't stop you, this place will go to hell anyways if they don't defeat the Kishin. Marie, can you...?"
"Of course," she then made her way over to the other side of the bed and helped Crona stand unsteadily.
He inquired as to where his shoes were before shaking his head. Crona had to get there as quickly as possible.
Stein led the way out of the room, then, as an afterthought, placed his black stained lab coat around Crona's shaking shoulders.
Crona looked up at the professor gratefully, and looked down at the black spots with a grimace.
Stein took his place next to Marie as they walked towards the battle brewing ahead of them.
He looked back at Marie before they entered the death room, who had a worried look on her face. Stein grabbed her hand firmly, and she looked up in surprise.
Stein gave her a steely gaze,"If it comes down to a fight," he lifted Marie's hand between them,"We're ready. I hope you know that, no matter what, I'm ready as long as you are." She returned the gaze, squeezed his hand back, and turned to face the threat head on.
Crona leaned shakily against Marie, who gripped his shoulder firmly as they watched the barrier the Kishin had made. It was finally dissipating, and a small team of senior Meisters and weapons hurried down the rubble to retrieve the team.
Crona smiled to himself numbly. She did it. She did it! He knew she was strong, having battled her twice. Maka was really something.
Once the team had been brought to the death room, everyone greeted them cheerfully.
Kid basically collapsed, but his faithful weapons merely sighed and pulled his arms over their shoulders, walking towards lord Death and speaking in hushed tones.
Maka looked around the room before her eyes fell on Spirirt. She walked quickly towards him and he fell to his knees, swiftly wrapping his arms around her in a fatherly embrace as tears fel down his face. He held her at arms length, smiling and nodding in approval. Soul Eater stood awkwardly off to the side, but grinned slyly as Spirit acknowledged him with a nod as well.
Tsubaki and Black Star were grinning as they stood off to the side, speaking animatedly to each other. Tsubaki was grinning as Black Star made kicking and stabbing motions, making the weirdest of faces the whole time.
Crona looked at Maka, pressing his lips together. As soon as Maka caught his gaze, she grinned and made her way over to him.
Crona felt tears prick his eyes as Make hugged him, and he held on tightly, happy that his friend had returned safely.
She pulled back, and placed her hands on his shoulders.
"Crona..." She gave him a firm look, possibly to keep her emotions under control,"I killed her," she said quietly,"Medusa. She's gone."
Crona's heart soared as his hands drifted across his torn up torso, and he couldn't stop the joyous tears from running down his face.
"Th-thank, you," he stammered,"Thank you," Crona kept sobbing out thanks as Maka pulled him into a firm embrace again.
Crona was free. His heart soared as he sobbed, his abusive mother would never, ever, touch him again!
He looked over Maka's shoulder, and was surprised to see the rest of her team, minus and unresponsive Kid, trailing behind her with wary looks on their faces.
Crona looked down awkwardly when Maka let go and twisted his hands together anxiously.
"I'm..." He started quietly,"Im so sorry to put you all through this...I....I'm so, so sorry..." He stammered.
Crona knew that he had hurt these people, and he was ready to face the grieving he would have to do, for surely they wouldn't even want to know him anymore.
The firm hand on his shoulder made him look up, and he was surprised to find souls red eyes looking into his with empathy.
"Hey," Soul looked back at the group and turned to face them, keeping a hand on Crona's shoulder.
"None of us are perfect, in fact, most of us are pretty fucked up." Crona looked at him with surprise and confusion.
Liz cleared her throat, shooting a glare at Soul Eater.
"I think what Soul is trying to say," Soul shrugged and rolled his eyes, and Liz brushed him aside to lean over and place her own, soft hand on Cronas shoulder,"Is that we all have problems, and that we've all been in places that have made us do stuff we didn't want to."
Liz straightened and looked over at Pattie, who was struggling with Kid's dead weight,"I know I have," she murmured quiet enough for Crona to wonder if he was supposed to hear that.
The group looked at him, and he swore that they were supportive ones, trusting ones. He gaped at them, with surprised happiness, trying to formulate words instead of tears when Stein came over.
"Crona, it's time for you to hold up your end of the bargain, time to rest," Crona nodded meekly and Stein surveyed Makas team, taking in every cut and bruise.
"The same goes for you all. You worked hard, and you defeated an enemy that's been around for a long time. You deserve to relax."
He placed a hand on Crona's shoulder, leading him to Marie who was chatting glumly with Asuza.
"It was terrible," she marked a line down her stomach with her finger,"Right through the-" she noticed Stein with Crona in tow and hushed up, looking down at the floor.
Asuza gave Stein a skeptical gaze, which he ignored as he looked at Marie,"I think it's time to get our patient back to the infirmary,"
Marie nodded and took a hold of Crona. It was easier for her to support him, she was closer to his height and Stein towered over practically everyone.
Crona felt his strength returning slowly, and didn't lean against Marie as much as before, but he still felt achingly exhausted.
His face was paler than ever, and his skin was sheer with a thin layer of sweat. Crona yawned and his head dropped. Then he stumbled, which efficiently made him wake up and quietly implored for Marie to hold him more firmly around the waist.
Once they reached the infirmary, Crona sagged into the bed, closing his eyes and laying there limply. He wanted to return Steins coat to him, but his limbs felt like sandbags.
Marie helped pull the thin sheets up, and Stein went to work with putting in another iv in Crona's other arm.
Crona shivered slightly as Stein's cold hands pressing against his arm, pushing his sleeve up to tie the little blue band that would help him find a vein.
Crona followed him with his eyes, the only part of him that didn't put up a protest at movement.
He felt his torso burning, and his hand hovered over his wound,"It hurts," he murmured. Stein rolled over to his cabinets and after successfully finding a vein and dug around for a minute, going back to his patient to pour a small vile into the iv.
"Here, it'll make the pain go away, and it'll help you to get some sleep." Crona closed his eyes and pressed his arms to his sides, nodding gratefully, and tiredly.
Crona yawned as the pain in his back and stomach began to fade, along with his consciousness. Soon, he was thoroughly asleep and breathing deeply.
Marie looked at him with pity and fondness,"He's seen and felt so much pain, I can feel it in his soul," she looked at Stein warmly,"But he still does his best to have courage," Marie ruffled his hair softly,"I'm glad that Maka and all them accept him like they do. They're a good influence on him."
Stein nodded absently as he spun around in his chair. He thought about people and how people influenced others. Good ways, bad ways, influence always ran through tight knit crowds.
Stein was ready to be influenced in a good way for once,"Marie," he started as he came to a shuddering halt in his chair,"How would you like to be my weapon," he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.
"Permanently, if you don't mind and if Lord Death doesn't mind. I'm in need of a newer one, and Spirit is the Lords scythe, so he's not an option," he pondered her for a moment before looking down,"and we resonate really well, I'm sure you noticed that today."
Marie chuckled quietly, covering her small smile,"Stein," she murmured. He shuddered again, that way she said his name just got to him somehow,"I would love to be your weapon."
Stein looked up at her, finally ridding his downcast look at the mention of his earlier set of mind, and took in her warm smile with surprise.
He found himself returning the smile, but it was more mischievous than hers. Stein was excited at the prospect of duels and fights.
Stein put his hand out, and from the foot of Crona's bed Marie accepted it with both of hers, shaking his hand as firmly as he had expected.
Her soft fingers on his calloused ones made a wave rush through his body all the way from his head to his toes.
It wasn't unpleasant, but it was new. Maybe he was ready for new, for different. Maybe he was ready to finally move on from his madness. Marie was an imperative, helping him to accept his madness and keep running even as he stumbled for a foothold. Stein grinned. Yes, he was ready to keep moving forward.