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Knock knock knock.
The Ultimate Nurse jumped up from her bed. Who could be knocking at this hour? Her nervous eyes jumped to her Monopad’s clock. 22:48. Who was it? Couldn't be someone trying to attack her, right? This killing game…
The knocking repeated which made Mikan yelp. Maybe the killer would kill her too, it would probably be best for her classmates. She broke out of her thoughts and ran to the door.
“I-it’s open.. I'm so sor-.. Peko?”
The Ultimate Swordswoman stood leaning on Mikan’s cottage wall, clutching her side with an unusually pained look on her face. She stumbled in and Mikan caught her, just barely. The swordswoman gave an attempt to stand up by herself but soon fell back onto Mikan. The nurse held onto the taller woman carefully, feeling something warm coat her fingers.
“Peko!? Are you alright? O-oh god are you bleeding?”
Mumbling something about a monobeast, Peko shifted in the Nurse's arms.
“O-oh right. L..Let's get you over here to a chair.”
Leading the injured woman to the chair on the opposite side of the room proved a struggle, especially how difficult Peko was to carry. Mikan would take a few steps at a time, and help Peko with each one. A trail of blood led from the still open door to the chair by the time Mikan had set the swordswoman down.
“I.. Apologize for coming at such a time.”
“Th-thats okay.. I can't believe you chose to c-come to me! The most useless, dumb, idiotic-”
“Mikan.”
The nurse’s ramble stopped at the sound of her name, yelping quietly. Peko met Mikan's eyes with some difficulty, she looked weary and a lens in her glasses was cracked.
“Now is not the time… You are skilled, that is why I came here.”
“O-oh, right. I'll treat you in a bit, I-I’m going to close the cottage door first if that's okay.”
Mikan only received a slight nod in response as she scurried over to the door and closed it gently. What had happened to Peko? She was beaten to hell and hadn't offered an explanation. Was she attacked by a killer? Did she kill someone?? The nurse whimpered at the thought as she nervously went back to standing by Peko.
“P-peko.. What happened?”
The Ultimate Swordswoman stayed quiet, turning her head away.
“Could you treat my wounds first?”
Telling me what to do, she definitely attacked someone! I'm helping a killer.. I'm a killer's accomplice! Why else would she be here at this time!?
Snatching the bag on the table nearby, she brought it over and set it on the floor next to Peko.
“C-could you take your clothes off?”
This proved the wrong way to phrase it as the Swordswoman’s head shot up, showing some confusion and shock.
“Eek! N-n-nothing like that- u-unless th-thats what you want- I need to see your injuries fully. I-I can strip too if you want me to!”
“No, keep your clothes on, please… There is no need for you to do that.”
“R-right! I'm sorry... ”
Peko gingerly raised her arms and started to remove her shirt, her normal stoic expression breaking as she winced in pain. Mikan rushed to help the woman, eventually Peko was nude from the waist up, save for a bra. Her clothes were placed on the ground next to Mikan’s bag. Mikan moved to unclasp Peko’s bra…
“I'm keeping this on.”
“O-oh. Right, sorry… Um, wh-what about your skirt? You couldn't stand well earlier, a-are your legs hurt?”
The Ultimate Swordswoman shifted in the chair, feeling a slight embarrassment from the lack of clothing.
“I believe I rolled my ankle while running.”
“Okay, then let's take your tights off for now.”
Finally, all injured parts of Peko were visible. When Mikan had knelt in front of the swordswoman, she had offered another service but Peko quickly declined. There were bruises on about half of her ribs, a huge gash in her cheek and several cuts across her arms. Mikan shook slightly at the sight as she prepared her supplies
“Peko.. H-how did you get s-s-so injured?”
The Swordswoman flinched as Mikan applied a cold ointment to her face.
“I tried fighting a monobeast, I apparently misunderstood what my-... What someone said.”
“H-huh!? A m-m-m-monobeast!? It's a miracle you're even a-alive…”
Despite the nurse standing inches from her face, Peko refused to meet her eyes. Mikan finished taping a gauze pad to Peko’s cheek and suddenly jumped back.
“Ah, s-sorry for being so close… Someone as g-gross as me shouldn't stink up the air around you…”
“Mikan… You shouldn't talk about yourself like that. It's not true… And you smell like disinfectant.”
Disinfectant? Is she trying to say I smell good?
“A-alright, well, I’ll get started on your a-arms then…?”
Peko didn't move a muscle, unless Mikan instructed her to do so. The only sounds that could be heard were Mikan’s occasional whimper and the muffled sound of waves.
The cuts on Peko’s arms weren't as deep as the one on her face, the Nurse was able to clean and wrap them much faster. Mikan took the time to discreetly inspect Peko’s build, feeling herself blush a little. When double checking Peko’s arms, there were some faded scars by the swordswoman’s wrists that Mikan stared at a bit too long, as they resembled her own at first glance, but the nurse concluded that they were from another cause.
“Well, th-that’s that… U-uhm… Can I treat y-your bruises now..? Ah…I should've done this earlier, I'm sorry! Could you take a few deep breaths for me?”
The Ultimate Swordswoman did as she was told, inhaling deeply and then exhaling, one, two, three times. Mikan watched Peko’s face closely, scanning for any sign of pain. Peko finished her instructed breathing and looked expectantly up at Mikan.
“O-oh! Um, d-does taking deep breaths hurt? I hope you don't have b-broken ribs, that will be v-very hard to treat while we're on this island…”
“Breathing deep is uncomfortable but nothing is broken.”
Mikan gave a small nod as she looked through her bag again. She thought about how Peko had looked at her then… Peko was doing as she was told and nothing more, that gave Mikan some sort of feeling that she loved. Being able to control someone just like that… Mikan would keep this thought in her head for weeks.
The Ultimate Nurse bent down next to the freezer under her desk. Since it was just Peko and herself she had managed to not trip once, she wasn't sure if Peko would take any interest in her if she ended up in another embarrassing pose anyways. She picked up an icepack next to various vials and wrapped it in a towel, then stood up to assess Peko once more.
“Um.. P-peko, you will have to take your bra off if you want me to treat the bruises o-on your chest…”
Embarrassment flooded Peko's face, this wouldn't be as easy as Mikan hoped.
“Sleep.. Here?”
“Y-yes! I need to make sure you can recover p-properly.. That is m-my duty- as a nurse!”
Having to sleep in someone else's cottage may be a problem for Peko. She wasn't supposed to get so involved with other Ultimates here…But just one night wouldn't hurt, right?
“Very well.”
Mikan's face lit up, giggling at Peko's response. Peko was still seated and studied the room once more, wondering what she would sleep on.
There was the chair she was already sitting on, and next to it was some sort of chair for patients with … What was that, leg stirrups? The swordswoman thought to herself on the likelihood of the nurse also knowing gynecology, it would make sense, she figured. There was enough room on the floor that she could kneel and still be under Mikan’s watch, the last thing Peko wanted was to be a bother to the nurse that was already helping her.
“You can, u-um, sleep in my bed.”
Peko’s thoughts came to a halt as she looked back to Mikan. She went to stand, wanting to deny it and offer, literally, any other place in the room, but her ankle had her stumbling back into the seat as Mikan jumped to try and help her.
“A-ah! I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have b-been so bold to try and tell you that-”
“No, it's my fault, there's a medical reason for me to rest there, correct?”
“O-oh, um, yes. You should keep your head elevated, and pillows can be put under your back to keep you upright, and you'll be easy to monitor. A-and that ankle too, it should be elevated above your heart-”
Throughout the nurse’s detailed explanation, Peko stayed silent. Having this amount of medical attention just for her was certainly a first. When in the Kuzuryuu family, unless her young master was there to vouch for her, she was told to “just rub some dirt on it,” and “a tool shouldn't bleed”. If Peko was being honest, the idea of being cared for so personally was a little frightening.
“Alright, I understand. Do whatever you need to.”
Nodding at the swordswoman, the nurse helped Peko up and moved her to the bed, gently helping her sit and bring both her feet up to rest on the mattress as she lay down. Mikan went to fetch more pillows from a cabinet and placed them under Peko.
While this was all happening, Peko was punching herself mentally, in disbelief she let this happen. It was completely unprofessional for a tool, tools don't need taking care of. She wondered what would've happened if she had gone back to her cottage instead… Perhaps there would've been a body discovery announcement, Peko thought to herself glancing at the blood trail that remained on the wooden floor.
“Y-you can relax now, Peko. I'll clean up a little bit and check on you again. Oh! And pain killers, it'll be hard to sleep without them.”
Reaching up to take her glasses off caused the swordswoman to wince, her arms still painfully sore. As if on cue, the remaining lens that wasn't cracked, just popped right out of the rim.
Well, shit. I'll ask Monokuma to get a replacement tomorrow, I guess.
Gingerly, Peko set her broken glasses and the lens on the furthest part of the nightstand she could reach, hoping Mikan wouldn't accidentally cut herself on the broken glass. That girl was incredibly clumsy… However, the nurse hadn't tripped or dropped anything since Peko had entered her cottage. It was as if Mikan became a completely different person in her company.
The swordswoman thought about this, wondering if Mikan could focus better in situations where she's in charge. During the couple days they had shared together, Mikan had shown to be a complete nervous mess in almost every social situation, but this was different somehow. Peko chalked it up to the talented side of the nurse taking over whenever there were injuries to be tended to.
Mikan returned to the bed to look over Peko once more, lightly tugging the bandages to ensure their secureness, before gently helping the woman sit up so she could swallow a few pills.
“Is there anything else you need, Peko? I-I see you took your glasses off…”
“Oh, yes. They were too broken to see out of, and I'll be sleeping soon, there is no use for them… But, when will I be able to, um, resume movement? My talent is… Quite important.”
“‘Resume movement’? Well, um.. With those injuries I’d say just a couple days of taking it easy, you shouldn't walk on that ankle for 32 hours… I can give you crutches, a-and whatnot. Luckily you had no broken bones, so you will be able to move around soon enough! W-well apart from your bruises… Just, don't push yourself.”
Thanks to Peko’s unexpressive face she was able to hide her disappointment of recovery time. “A couple days” was an extremely long amount of time where she couldn't perform her duties. Having to rely on Mikan wasn't horrible, but it was a bad look on her job as a tool. Peko decided that she would comply with Mikan's recommendations for as long as she needed until she could walk without assistance.
“I-if worst comes to worst, I always have… stronger painkillers… Hehehe, Monokuma trusted me with opioids like morphine and fentanyl~”
As the nurse giggled once more, in an incredibly unsettling way, Peko had second thoughts about Mikan’s position as her caretaker.
“... I know you're passionate about your work but, I think I'll be okay without those…”
“R-right, sorry.”
Having been shot down, the nurse climbed into bed next to Peko, taking care not to touch any injuries. The swordswoman remained silent, somewhat shocked that she found Mikan pressed up against her.
“Um, I know it's a little weird b-but, heartbeats are supposed to help people relax. And this way I can monitor you closer, okay?”
With those words, Peko felt her own heart beat a little faster, and blushed slightly, hoping Mikan hadn't noticed. Though it was likely she did, as she giggled softly and nuzzled in closer, her head above Peko's on the stacked pillows, and her chest quite close to the swordswoman’s face.
“Understood… Goodnight Mikan.”
“‘Night Peko.”
It sounded as if the nurse had already started falling asleep, her heartbeat slowing. Mikan was right about heartbeats helping others relax. The steady rhythm of her heart had Peko growing drowsier by the second. Any previous thoughts of unprofessionalism had drifted away, along with Peko’s initial feelings of unease. Maybe fighting the monobeast had been worth it, she didn't fulfill her young master's wish, nor succeeded in winning the battle she started. But right now, nothing of that mattered. Right now, the only thing on her mind was the woman currently hugging her tight.
The two slept peacefully until the morning, when Ibuki broke into their cottage, witnessed the scene, then slammed the door on the way out as she went to write a new song about yuri.