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Video; username: the.boneless

[The video opens up on Ivar in the hallway of the hospital, sitting right outside a room. His free hand has a knife in it, fiddling round with it. Some might notice there's holes in the wall from where he's already stabbed through it a few times. He's got a grim look on his face and his eyes are hard, like someone facing a battle that they know they can't win.]

For those who care, Letha's in the hospital. Things aren't looking good. She's-- [There's a moment where something flickers over his face, an expression filled with pain and worry. Then he composes himself again.] --Something's gone wrong with her daughter, and according to the doctors, it's draining her life force. They don't know if they can fix what's wrong with her.

[For a moment, it appears that's all he's going to say. Then he turns and swiftly drives the knife into the wall again, burying the blade right up to its hilt. Well, Ivar wouldn't be himself without an irrational spike of anger.] Someone distract me before I kill one of these useless doctors.

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Shit.

[ He hisses it out. ]

The child needs to get out of her body. Whether it's alive or not, I can bet that's what is doing it. Not sure why exactly. Necromancy isn't something I studied much of. But it needs to come out.

[ Now he just needs to find where the hell they have her. He wants to believe his colleagues would know to do this but who knows. ]

Do you know where they are? The room?

I know her. She'll only agree to that if you can guarantee her daughter won't be harmed and will be born alive.

[Istrid was the last piece she had of her husband and her home. Letha would fight tooth and nail to keep her baby, despite the fact it was killing her.]

Room 315.

[ He frowns at that. ]

That's just it: I don't know if her daughter is still her daughter. I don't know how this magic works but if her child is running the risk of sucking the life out of her, a choice will need to be made.

[ A little softer, ]

And I think you already know that.

[ There's no delicate way to put that and from what he knows of Ivar, he wouldn't appreciate kid gloves or tiptoeing around something this serious. Especially if it's someone he cares for. ]

But I'll try to do what I can for her. If she'll let me.

[ Already he's getting his sling ring out and mentally picturing the third floor. He can get there faster if he can open a portal there. ]

Hell of a choice to make.

[Letha would want them to save their daughter if it came down to a choice between them. But Ivar didn't know if he could have the strength to go through with it. To lose her would open another hole in his heart that might never heal. He's already lost so many people in his life. When will it end?

He's contemplating this when the portal opens. Instinctively, his hand goes to his knife, holding onto it even after Strange steps through. He eyes the sorcerer with the suspicion of a man who doesn't have much faith left that his problems will have an easy solution.]

That's quite an entrance, Doctor.

[ It is. And Stephen is hoping it won't come to that but he can't rule out the possibility just yet. He'll try to exercise any other options if he can.

He hangs up when he sees Ivar there, pocketing his phone. He waves a hand to close the portal and gives a nod and shrug. ]

Saves on time.

[ Then, ]

How long has this been going on with her?

I first noticed around Prijata, so about two months ago now.

[He's just going to not mention the fact that he had gotten into a fight with her which had threatened to turn physical when Ivar had noticed how weak Letha was becoming.]

I thought it was just the usual strain of being pregnant, but she kept getting weaker. She'd seem to get better when I was around or touching her, but as soon as I was gone, she'd get worse again.

[He'd chalked it up to coincidence at the time, but now he's not wondering if there was something more going on. Somehow, his touch seemed to counteract whatever effects their daughter seemed to be causing.]

Edited (repetitive words are the bane of my existence) 2017-08-02 06:50 (UTC)

[ He frowns at being told 'two months' but bites back any reprimand he would normally give. He listens to Ivar and there is some sympathy on his end. Most pregnancies are draining, some more so than others. It usually depends on the mother. It was easy to attribute the symptoms to that.

He sighs through his nose, nodding. But then, that last bit sticks out. ]

Would you feel tired or weak afterward?

Never.

[He couldn't quite put together what that meant, that their daughter would drain her mother but not him. Maybe Strange would have some thoughts.]

She's resting right now if you want to take a look at her.

Edited 2017-08-02 16:15 (UTC)

[ His brow creases at that, not sure what it means, either. Yet. But it is something. Especially if Letha felt better when Ivar was with her.

But he nods, ]

Better sooner than later.

Come on then.

[He wheels into Letha's room. She's pale, almost to the point of being grey, with her eyes closed. There's dark circles around her eyes and her long hair is disheveled. If it weren't for the slow rise and fall of her chest, she'd be easy to mistake for a corpse.

Ivar takes her limp hand gently.]

Letha? There's a doctor here who thinks he can help.

[After a few moments of silence, her eyes flutter open and she takes a moment to look at her surroundings. But Ivar is touching her, and she feels a pulse of relief as the pain and sickness at least stops for the moment.]

....still fine....

[It's about all she can manage, her voice rough and coming from cracked lips. But she's still clinging stubbornly to the idea that she's not going to die from this. She refuses to die.]

[ Whatever relief he's seeing at Ivar using a wheelchair to get around is pretty much squashed by the sight of Letha. His expression says as much even if he presses his mouth into a thin line to keep silent.

For the moment. He moves over to her other side and leans down slightly to get a closer look at her skin, face. This isn't good.

He looks over at Ivar taking her hand and then watches her face for any change. He straightens up when she speaks and moves to get some gloves on. ]

I hate to point out the obvious but you are not fine, Letha.

[ Adding, ]

Sorry, my bedside manner has never been all that good. But when it comes to something this serious, I don't think sugar-coating it will help.

[ Once he has the gloves on, he's reaching down to carefully lift one of her eyelids up more and then the other to see the state of them better. ]

You might be in the process of dying.

[Ivar's glad to see her revive when he touches her, even if it's just for a moment. He just wishes there was more he could do.

At Strange's words, he glares at him, his words coming out in a fierce growl.]

She's not going to die! She's not!

[Her fingers squeeze Ivar's hand lightly, doing her best to comfort him back as well as be sure he won't stop touching her. She feels like she's dying all over again each time the doctors ask him to leave the room.

Her eyes seem fine and her pupils react normally, although she makes a weak attempt to close her eyes in protest of the inspection. Thankfully, with Ivar holding her hand, Strange won't have to feel the effects of touching her in this state.... but she seems far from willing to cooperate with him. It's more accurate to say that she's too weak to stop him.]

[ Stephen won't be asking him to leave the room but he will look over at him when he hears that growl. He's not bothered by it. He's a bit too concerned at the state of things with Letha. His hand moves to feel the pulse point on her neck. ]

I hope not. But I won't lie to you about how this looks.

[ Her eyes look better than he thought they would but her overall state is still worrisome. He looks Letha in the eyes, ]

I'm going to do what I can to help you, alright? I need you to work with me. Now, I am going to examine your stomach.

[ He steps to further down the bed and moves the blanket and gown if she'll let him. ]

[Ivar rubs his thumb over the smooth skin of Letha's hand. He doesn't want to think about life without her, having to raise their daughter on his own. That was even assuming the child was going to be born alright.

He can see the silent protest in her eyes at what Strange is doing and squeezes her hand.]

Let the doctor do his job.

[Only he is allowed to criticize the way things are going around here.]

[Her pulse is slow, just barely enough to move her blood through her body. It makes her cold to the touch, and her fingers are blue at the tips, much like her lips.

She doesn't protest the examination, relaxing or... rather, submitting when Ivar chides her. She acts more like a sedated animal than anything, in the state she's in. And he'll notice that her belly seems to be the only part of her that's normal... it's warm, healthy and even the proper skin tone, as if her body's functions have shifted their entire focus to nurturing her child.]

...Don't need doctors... just want to... go home...

[She's speaking a little better, with Ivar touching her, but she sounds no less sullen. No, not sullen... subdued.]

[ The state of her swollen belly only serves to worry him more. He feels the skin and through the gloves, he can feel the difference in temperature. He lifts her other hand and compares it to the skin of her stomach just to make sure. The muscle feels firmer, too.

He moves her hand to his other one, getting an idea, ]

If it's any consolation, I'm not just a doctor.

[ And, like with Jessica's hand at the masquerade, he encases Letha's hand in a golden orb. Except this time, he's going to see if he can repair what damage seems to be done. Starting with her hand, first. He concentrates, trying to focus on repairing muscles, veins, anything to get that part of her body stronger.

To Ivar, Letha, whoever can answer, ]

How far along is the pregnancy?

[Ivar watches Doctor Strange perform his magic, and surprisingly, he's less suspicious and protective when he sees what's going on. Regular methods have failed. Time for something new. For the first time, he's actually thankful the man seems to straddle the line somewhere between science and magic. They're going to need a fair amount of both if Letha is survive her pregnancy.]

About eight and a half months. [There's a pause.] I think. Kind of hard to tell with dying and coming back to life disrupting the whole thing.

[Letha had told him as much the first time they had talked.]

[She nods along in confirmation... and thankfully, with the baby comforted by Ivar's presence, the magic actually does manage to work on her for now. The hand Strange is holding stops shivering as badly, and she squeezes it briefly in a sign of thanks.]

[ He's doing the mental calculations when he gets an answer and continues them when Letha confirms. It could be risky but the baby should be fine outside of the womb. Especially if she is doing better than her mother.

The squeeze to his own hand has him looking back at her and he gives a small squeeze in response. He waves his other hand and the glowing orb disappears. He is glad to see some more color to her but he knows it won't last for long. ]

I can give you the energy you need for your body to heal but if your daughter keeps sucking it all up, it won't do you any good. Nine months is full term for a child but we should be able to take her out early. She might need some extra medical care - though I'm doubting it - and some time in an incubator but she can survive if we take her out now.

[ He looks over at Ivar to make sure he knows he's being addressed with this proposition, too. He looks back to Letha. ]

And you could actually have a chance to recover with her out of your body.

[It sounds like the doctors would be able to do this without any risk to their daughter, which is one of the main factors in Ivar's decision. To Vikings, a C-section was a death sentence for a woman carrying a child, and oftentimes killed the child as well. But they've got enough technology here to make it easier all the way around.]

If both of them will survive, I say do it.

[He turns to Letha.]

But I'm leaving the choice up to you. You're her mother.

[There really is no room to deny the child is killing her, is there... but still, Letha hesitates. C-sections aren't a thing that she'd even heard of in Thornwell, not something discussed, because medical knowledge was in such short supply. But needing medical attention to birth a healer baby... it's just a matter of pride that has her hiding her face in her pillow and disengaging from the conversation.

The doctor is kind, and Ivar wants it. They both know now, without a doubt, that she was such a failure she managed to mother a horrible creature instead of a child. But she can't suffer the indignity of admitting this is even necessary, so she shakes her head lightly while her face is buried and hidden in the pillow. She'd rather die than make this easy.]

[ Stephen is relieved to hear Ivar agree to the idea but Letha's reaction leaves much to be desired. Stephen frowns at her and gives her hand a small squeeze. As much as a part of him hates what he's about to say, the doctor in him pushes for it. ]

This needs to be done, Letha. If it's not, you will die and you will leave your daughter motherless. Is that what you want for her?

[Ivar scowls at Letha's reaction. He doesn't have either great bedside manner or an abundance of patience at the best of times. Right now, things are far from the best of times. Despite Letha's weakened state, he reaches out, grabbing her chin, so she's forced to turn and look at me.]

You got to be kidding me. Do you have any common sense whatsoever? You'll leave her and me alone just because you won't agree to something that will save your life?

[He decides to go for the worst thing he can think of saying.]

When Istrid is old enough and asks where her mother is, I'm going to tell her she's dead. All because she didn't want her life to be saved because of her stupid pride.

Video; username: the.boneless

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sorry for the slow!

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