Chapter Text
His right arm supporting his weight against the door frame, Alhaitham stretched out his left hand and fumbled along the wall for the lights. With a flick of his wrist and a hum, the pitch blackness that engulfed the entryway dissipated, bringing with it a soft, sweet ambient glow reminiscent of the early morning.
“The house is quiet… Kaveh… Kaveh must be asleep,” Alhaitham thought in relief. At the very least, he could address his wounds in peace without the looming presence of his pain-in-the-ass roommate.
He really hadn’t meant to get caught up in trouble so late, but after a long day turned into the evening at the Akademiya, Alhaitham had run across some fiends in the business district on his way home. Somehow these low-level Abyss mages had managed to slip into Sumeru undetected and wreak havoc in the streets. Of course, he had briefly considered letting them run loose—after all, it was not his job to meddle in the affairs of Sumeru’s citizens. Whatever issues befell their businesses were the world’s natural order. However, on the off chance that someone’s life could be put at risk… Alhaitham couldn’t help but remember his rather temperamental roommate’s purview. Alhaitham was stronger than the average citizen, and the owner of a Dendro vision to boot. It would be no skin off his back to lend his assistance, and it wasn’t like there would be any witnesses around to see. Besides, he may even be able to obtain some useful information about their reasons for being here. It couldn’t hurt to quell a skirmish on his way home.
So, with Kaveh’s face floating around annoyingly in his mind, Alhaitham decided to jump into action.
With the long day’s exhaustion eating away at his body, Alhaitham wanted to make this fight as quick as possible. During the walk from the Akademiya, it took all he had to keep from falling asleep on his feet. There was no use in dragging a conflict with mediocre trouble out for longer than necessary. Quickly decommissioning the bulk of the group, Alhaitham cornered one individual, a Hydro Abyss Mage, and held it down for questioning.
The interrogation didn’t go as smoothly as he hoped. Unbeknownst to him, a second Cryo Abyss Mage he had felled earlier got its second wind, sending a burst of Cryo energy straight for his heart! Alhaitham felt the ice-cold breeze behind him from the attack and straightened his back subconsciously. Not even a fourth of a second later, he felt the shards of ice collide with his body, and let loose a poorly suppressed gasp. Seeing he was distracted, the Hydro Mage in front of him took the opportunity to douse him in a flood of water. Alhaitham felt his body freeze. Completely and utterly shocked, he could only stand there blankly while his brain processed the situation. He must really be out of his element today.
With leaden limbs and no time to waste, Alhaitham swung his sword into the Hydro Mage in front of him before spinning around to meet his opponent. There was no way he could afford to be careless again and suffer another hit. His sword went cleanly into the Cryo Abyss Mage’s gut.
Alhaitham swayed on his feet as a shiver passed through his body. As much as he hoped for it to be the effect of the cool night air on his skin, he knew that the situation was far direr than that. He could already feel the frost spreading across his abdomen with each breath he took. When he moved his fingers around the area of impact, they came away cold, wet, and red. Alhaitham chose to pretend the color was a trick of the dimly lit street.
Regardless, it didn’t matter. He needed to get home first. Who knew what other conflict could befall him if he remained here? At the very least, he had taken care of the rogue Abyss Mages, and his job here was done. Cleanup could be left for someone else in the morning. With that thought, he picked up his feet—which by this point felt like two blocks of cement—and slowly started making the journey back to his house.
After making it home with no further incidents and switching on the lights, Alhaitham clumsily dropped his sword by the couch with a muffled thud. This was the sort of mess he would often get onto Kaveh about, but at that moment Alhaitham couldn’t be bothered to care. Kaveh deserved a taste of his own medicine anyways, or he’d never learn.
Alhaitham slowly moved into the kitchen and reached up to one of the cupboards for a first aid kit. However, his carelessness in minding his wound quickly brought him a wave of sharp pain and dizziness that almost sent the floor flying up to meet his face. Alhaitham immediately lowered his arm with a hiss, instead choosing to press one hand to the wound while the other gripped the countertop for support with white knuckles. He groaned and held his breath as another shiver threatened to have his teeth chattering. This couldn’t bode well for him. It was getting harder and harder to contain himself, but Alhaitham knew he had to keep relatively quiet lest he woke Kaveh up.
A few minutes passed before the dizziness dissipated some. Swallowing back residual nausea, he reached for the cupboards again, this time much more slowly and with one hand still pressing against his wound. Alhaitham sifted through the cupboard while leaning his weight against the countertop, but he couldn’t manage to find the first aid kit. Thinking back… the last one to use it was Kaveh when he burned the side of his wrist making breakfast one morning. Back then, Alhaitham had run out to fetch Kaveh a cooling agent, while reminding him to put the first aid kit back in the same spot once he finished.
“If that little genius Kaveh misplaced the first aid kit…” Alhaitham’s grim thought trailed off. He didn’t want to think about what he’d do tonight if he couldn’t find it. He brought his arm down again, before swinging his hips up onto the counter to take some of the weight off his feet while he hunted through the cabinets. One arm still practically glued to his abdomen, Alhaitham reached deeper into the cupboard, feeling around for the sharp, cool edges of the first aid kit. Just when he was about to lose hope and start cursing Kaveh for his inattentiveness, his fingertips came into contact with that familiar object, and he triumphantly pulled it out. Just in time too, it seemed, as Alhaitham’s head started to swim again. He closed the cabinet door and leaned against it, letting his eyes tremble shut while he caught his breath. How had that little task drained so much of his energy? His body shuddered. He felt cold all over, from the edges of his wound to the tips of his fingers and toes. When Alhaitham opened his eyes, he could see condensation in the air from every exhale. The house was much warmer than outside—he shouldn’t be experiencing a chill anymore. Clearly, he had underestimated the effects of that Cryo Mage’s magic on his body.
Another shiver went through Alhaitham’s body, but this time it didn’t stop. He could no longer suppress the effects of the hit. Dimly, he registered the state of his dress—clothes completely soaked through, hair dripping. If he glanced at the path he walked into the kitchen, he could see a trail of water leading up to a puddle under the countertop where he sat. This was ridiculous. Kaveh was sure to throw a fit when he woke up in a couple of hours. Alhaitham sighed and carefully hopped down from the counter, first aid kit in hand. He decided he might as well change his clothes and assess the damage in his own room, where his mess would be out of his roommate’s sight. At least then he wouldn’t have to subject himself to Kaveh’s temper in the morning.
With this in mind, Alhaitham trudged through the kitchen and back in the direction of the entryway towards his room. His pace was more sluggish now than ever, shivers constantly wracking his body as the water from his clothes and the blood from his wound mixed and dripped onto the floor. Although he would never be caught admitting it, Alhaitham found himself having to stop and catch his breath several times. Dizziness threatening to send him swaying again, he spotted his abandoned sword and the couch off to the side and decided to take a short break before moving back to his room.
Alhaitham sank into the couch with a moan and tossed the kit off to the coffee table. He leaned his head back against the cushions and exhaled more frigid air. Shit, he was exhausted. At this rate, he wouldn’t be able to make it to work in the morning… Alhaitham sighed. What a terrible disruption to his schedule. A heaviness weighed on his eyelids. Maybe if he just closed his eyes for a couple of minutes… He’d move off the couch shortly. Just a couple of minutes of rest… Alhaitham’s breath evened out as he slipped into unconsciousness.