glacial_queen | Fandom Clinic, Monday Evening (Reply)

The scene in the clinic room hadn't changed since Sookie had left. 'Emma' was still unconscious on the cot, looking for all the world as if she were just asleep.

Sookie	Sookie, with Emma and Karla returned to the clinic with her arms crossed around her stomach. She smiled a little at Emma's actual body, since it looked like Bobby hadn't started coma-walking or anything, and he looked peaceful, at least. "How're you doing, sweetie?" she asked, turning to look at Emma. "Ready for this?"
Karla	Karla knelt by Bobby-in-Emma's body, using Craft to make sure that everything was indeed all well within the body itself. *Bobby?* she sent on a psychic thread, trying to reach him. Bobby can you hear me? Can you feel me near you?
Bobby-Emma	There was a consciousness there, but it was still too deep under to be able to reply to Karla's question.
Emma-Bobby	"Are we sure I can't be Bobby a little longer?" Emma asked, trying not to look at her own unconscious body. It was too creepy. "I could try making ice cream for everyone?"
Karla	"I've tried making ice cream," Karla said with a smile. "It's harder than it looks. There's a lot of stirring involved. And salt." And sometimes fires. ...Don't ask.
Sookie	"I'm not sure Bobby's ever made ice cream for me. Just kept it cold," Sookie mused, before shaking her head. "Not something we need to try now, though. Don't you wanna be all pretty and glamorous and Emma-like again, anyway?"
Emma	"What I want is a nice large glass of brandy and a nap," Emma grumbled, eyes flickering to her body and away. But she couldn't put this off, she knew that, and sighed. "So, should I sit on the floor or on a chair or what?"
Karla	"A chair," Karla said. "It'll be best if you're comfortable and this way Bobby won't wake up on the ground."
Sookie	Sookie was nodding. "As funny as it might be," she said, before glancing over at the prone Emma on the bed. "Sorry, honey," she added, even if Bobby couldn't hear her. She looked to Karla. "We're just going in there and helping her move back, right? Like when we chased her through the fog?" This was still new to her.
Karla	"Pretty much," Karla said, as if they did this sort of thing every day in Kaeleer. The last thing any of them needed was to worry about it not working. "We may have to coax Bobby back into his own body if he's not sure where to go or how, but I doubt that will take much effort. He knows where he should be, after all."
Emma	"I'll just kick him out of mine if he dithers," Emma said as she settled into the chair and closed her eyes. All she could do now was wait, and trust that her friends would keep her safe.
Sookie	Sookie nodded. "He wants to get back just as bad as you do, I bet," she added lightly to Emma. "Plus he hasn't gotten to do anything with your powers, so he'll probably be sulking that he missed out." She bit her lip, then reached for the hands of the other two. "My powers work best if I'm touching someone," she admitted.
Karla	"That's good," Karla said. "The stronger the bond between us, the better. Now we just need to lower our inner barriers and shields a bit. Once we're linked, we can go hunting for Bobby and send him toddling back to his own body."
Sookie	Sookie lowered her barriers, letting in the sounds of others' thoughts, drifting in from other parts of the clinic. << Hello, >> she projected, sending it to only Emma and Karla and trying to provide a basis for the link. She reached out to brush against Bobby's sleeping consciousness, too, pulling him in to the mix. Even if he was out like a light.
Karla	Hello, Karla said back, catching hold of Sookie's link. There was an odd sensation, like a dislocated joint being put back in the proper socket and they were melded. So far so good. Now for the tricky part: an Emma with no telepathy and a slumbering Bobby.
Emma	Oh god, finally, something that felt normal. << I can hear you, >> Emma-Bobby confirmed, clinging to that sense of comfort from the link. << If you can tap into my power while Bobby's driving, go for it, otherwise I'll add it in when I'm back in control. >> It was like being able to breathe again, hearing them like this.
Sookie	This was...bizarre. Getting Emma through the link was like when she was trying to keep a mental thread with Bobby -- not as strong as what she heard from Karla, and distinctly the same sensation of more work on her end, but in Emma's voice. << He isn't using it, >> she replied, << but it's still there. I'm connected to his brainwaves, even if he's sort of...asleep. This should be easy, right? We'll just pull you both through the link, and you'll wake up where you should be! >> She dove through the link, feeling for a moment like she was underwater, and latched firmly onto the signature she recognized as Emma. She was still linked to Karla, but without Emma having access to her powers, it was harder on Sookie than the last time they had done this. << Everyone still good? >> Faintly, as though far away, she could feel Bobby tied into this, too. His mental presence was like a soft heartbeat in her mind; not intrusive or active, but if she listened, she could find him.
Emma	<< Feels fine. >> Except that Emma really really wanted this over with so she could have her powers and her body back, even if she stayed in the coma. << Stop being teases, darlings, and give it to me. >>
Karla	Karla had gratefully left Sookie to draw everyone into the link and make sure they were solidly connected, while she tried to figure out the best way to facilitate the transfer. This was unlike anything she'd done in the past, but between her training as a Black Widow and her year of trading tips with Sookie and Emma, she was able to cobble together a ritual that would return both people to their rightful bodies. Forgive me, she sent, but we're going further inside each other's minds than we've ever been. I swear that it's necessary, though. To draw Emma and Bobby into the link, she needed to encapsulate the entirety of their minds with her Craft, and that could open up their innermost thoughts to all four of them if they weren't all scrupulously careful. Powered by Sookie's link, Karla created a small space within their shared minds. It looked like the Preserve around the school, since she wanted to keep everything as familiar as possible. This would be their staging ground, first to find Bobby, and then to complete the transfer, both of which could only take place in a purely psychic place. Sookie? Karla extended a mental hand, pulling her into the psychic landscape. We need to find Bobby before we can go any further. He's here, just hidden. Do you understand what I mean?
Sookie	Sookie looked around, nodding as she took Karla's hand. << I can find him, >> she said confidently, biting her lower lip. << Don't suppose you think he can hear us? Would he be sleeping here? >>
Karla	He might be sleeping, Karla agreed. Or perhaps even hiding, if he saw this as a mental intrusion. She glanced around, looking for some trace of Bobby. There were slight, melting traces of ice leading off into the Preserve. That way, I think. Once we find Bobby, we can wake him and get this all sorted out, thank the Darkness.
Emma	She looked like herself again. This was why Emma loved the psychic plane, for its talent of showing what was real in a person, and she took a moment to admire her ice-free body. Still, they had work to do, and Emma sighed and just started trailing along behind them. "ROBERT DRAKE," she yelled. "Give me my body back, or I will give you a reason to hide."
Bobby	Well, if he wasn't awake before, he was now. "What- what's going on?" he asked a bit groggily, looking around. It looked sort of like the Preserve, but there was a certain surreal quality to it.
Sookie	Sookie hurried over to him, reaching for his hand. "Hi, honey," she said, grateful to see him, but a little thrown by their venue, still. God, this whole thing was...surreal. Good word choice. "Long story. But we're gonna make it right and...way less confusing in a second, okay?" she promised, smiling a little. She glanced from Bobby, to Emma, and to Karla. "What do you need me to do?" she asked, a little unsure. Her powers, not as extensive as Karla's, seemed like they'd be a bridge at best -- support for the main event.
Karla	"Honestly, Bobby," Karla teased. "Sleeping while the rest of us did all the work." She frowned a moment, thinking about how to do this. "All right, Emma, Bobby, I want you both to focus on your own bodies. How things feel, smell, taste. Bobby, think of how it feels when you conjure ice and make it bend to your will. Emma, remember how it feels to reach out with your telepathy. Remember pain, remember pleasure. Remember anything thoroughly grounded in sensation." "Sookie?" Thank the Darkness for Sookie. Not only did she know both Emma and Bobby very well, her knowledge of how their physical brains felt made this a Hell of a lot easier. "I can create the way for them to get back, but I'll need you to sort of...escort them? You're the one who will be able to feel when they're each in their own body. That's when I'll know to release the spell."
Bobby	"I wasn't the one sleeping," Bobby frowned as he curled his hand in Sookie's. "Was I? I remember the clinic, we came to see Emma. Oh God," he groaned. "Emma. I'm so sorry," he gave her a pleading look. "I never meant to hurt you."
Emma	"Focus now, grovel later," Emma replied absently, already focusing on Karla's words. "I'll forgive you after you help me carry my books to accounting this week."
Sookie	Sookie was nodding along, already trying to focus outside, on their physical bodies. She could feel them, still, but they seemed far away, like something buzzing in the back of her head. She could feel the four presences in the room, still, and after a moment's concentration, was able to locate the distinctive, unique hums of Bobby and Emma's brains. "I can do it. Their bodies'll tell me when they're back, no problem."
Karla	"Excellent. Then let's get to work." She waited until Emma and Bobby were focusing like she'd told them. Once their attention was focused on their proper bodies, their minds would follow. In control of the dreamscape as she was, she was able to twist a bit of the Craft, and suddenly their thoughts and memories were visible, appearing at small silver wisps, rising up from them. She was careful when she grasped them, trying to intrude upon their private thoughts no more than necessary, weaving their memories into a shining silver cord for each of them. "Sookie?" she murmured, handing Bobby's cord to her. "Can you attach these to the right body?"
Sookie	Sookie took the cord, doing her best to shield herself even here within this dreamscape. Having watched Karla intently, she had a fairly good idea of what to do, and focused her attention outside of the dreamscape. She located Bobby's brain signature easily, recognizing his distinct pattern after listening for it so often, and shifted her attention there. The cord in her hand glowed faintly, even as Sookie was a bit removed from the situation, and as she tapped into Bobby's brain more thoroughly, she squeezed his hand there in the psychic plane. "Okay. This one's connected to Bobby's brain. Hold still, sweetie," she said softly, letting go of his hand but keeping her fingers light on his arm and staying in contact as she moved to hand him the cord -- then paused, and as an extra precaution, looped it around his wrist. "Hold onto that, okay? And keep in contact with me, so the connection stays strong as long as we're here." She opened her eyes again, looking a bit more tired than she had. "Emma's?"
Karla	"Oh, that was a good idea," Karla said, glancing at the loop around Bobby's wrist. Her eyes were tired, but she smiled at Sookie anyway. "I hadn't that of doing that. Can you do the same with Emma's, too? I'm almost done weaving hers."
Bobby	"Hold on, right," Bobby murmured to himself, clutching at the thread of his memories. Honestly, he was more used to being the one to drag someone back from the psychic plane, not the one needing the dragging. It was... unsettling wasn't quite right. Freaky, maybe.
Sookie	"Mm-hmm," Sookie murmured in reply to Karla, sounding a little vague and far away as she reached back outside their surroundings, to tap into Emma's mind. "I've found her. Let me know when you're ready." She reached out to try to touch Emma's arm, lightly, strengthening the connection. "I don't want them getting lost," she said with a little smile as she opened her eyes again, nodding to the small loop around Bobby's wrist. "Y'all are like Hansel and Gretl, following the breadcrumbs home."
Emma	"Except the breadcrumbs didn't work," Emma couldn't help pointing out. "The birds ate them. We’re following pebbles, perhaps, or I can always kick the witch at the end. No offense, Karla." "But I'm ready."
Karla	"There will be no kicking," Karla ordered absently. "Otherwise I will leave you all here and go rooting through your stuff." She continued to add to the memory-ropes, making them stronger, sturdier, denser. In all honesty, she wished she had a little of their blood to work with; blood was the memory's river and would make this all much easier. But since when did they ever do anything easily. "All right," she said, when the memory-ropes were as strong and as thick as she could make them, "I think we're ready. Who's first?"
Sookie	"No birds will eat these," Sookie said just as absently, looping the rope around Emma's wrist, as well. She was vague, far away, aware that there was some sort of presence here, but her mind was focused on the two she was watching. The individual hum of their brains buzzed in her mind, filling her senses, and she stayed still, one hand on Bobby's arm, one on Emma's, keeping that connection as strong as she could. She wanted to be acutely aware of everything in this transition, in case something, Lord forbid, went awry.
Emma	"If I go first, I can help with Bobby," Emma pointed out. "It would help take some of the strain off you two, at least."
Bobby Pouty McPuppy	"Hey, who're you calling a strain?" Bobby said with an exaggerated pout.
Sookie	Sookie smiled a little, still far away. "Only a little strain," she said softly, completely lying, yes. "I've never been this tapped into anyone before, let alone two people. It's weird. I can practically feel your minds' pulses. So, yeah, Emma, if you want to go first, I'd be appreciative."
Karla	Karla nodded, not bothering to add a heartfelt 'Thank the Darkness.' But this was work and they--for lack of a better term--were heavy. "All right, Em. So this is what you're going to do. That memory-rope is your connection to your body. You're going to have to sort of...climb it? If that makes sense?" Stupid words. So imprecise. "I'll be there, pushing you along, okay? Your mind wants to get back into your body. It just doesn't remember the way."
Emma	Emma just shut her eyes, blocking out the chatter from Sookie, Bobby, and even Karla. This was the psychic plane; the was no 'up' or 'down' if you knew what you were doing, and despite her lack of psionic ability at the moment, Emma was intimately familiar with how this place worked. She mentally re-oriented the space in her own mind; pulling the rope hand-over-hand to herself, walking where the rope led and at the same time pulling her goal to her. Just go, and she'd leave the rest to the other girls.
Karla	And there was plenty enough to do, while Emma climbed/pulled/dragged. For all that Emma's mind and body longed to be reunited, there was part of her mind deep beyond the conscious level, that resisted the urge. This was dangerous, even if Karla hadn't come right out and said so, and the last switch had been too abrupt and terrifying for her mind to be comfortable doing so again. And so it clung to Bobby's body, which was foreign and odd but at least safe and Bobby's body clung back, unwilling to lose even the foreign mind that had taken control. And so Karla was there, trying to untangle those threads, even as Emma inched forward on her rope. It was like unraveling two skeins of spidersilk that had gotten hopelessly jumbled together--and then dipped in oil to be especially slippery and troublesome. It took every bit of concentration and caste-Craft she had, to separate them without harming either. But with each knot untangled, however, Emma's journey was just a little bit faster, a little bit easier.
Sookie	Sookie's eyelids fluttered as the connection she was working so hard to maintain shifted, just slightly. There was movement in this little space she'd hollowed out, in the bond she was keeping taut between Bobby and Emma. She shifted her focus, helping Karla with the knots the best she could. For her, it was like wading through a murky, black nest of solid ink, the individual strands clinging to one another, unwilling to budge. She worked delicately, not quite unknotting anything, but moving the threads from under one another, crossing them over and loosening them, to make things easier for not only Emma, but for Karla to do her job.
Karla	Thank you, Karla sent when she noticed. You are a blessing from the Darkness.
Emma	It felt like it took forever. It most likely took place between one beat of a heart and the next. Because any unconscious resistance from any of their minds was ultimately powerless in the face one very large obstacle: what Emma wanted, Emma got, and Emma wanted to be back in her body Right Now. Emma focused on sensation, on memories, and things that she knew were unique to her, things that Bobby could not have shared (and if she was trying to shield a few of them from her friends, well, this was not a time for dirty stories). Small things, too, like the smell of her perfume right out of the bottle, and the way she liked to wash her hair. And each step seemed to become easier and faster until all of the sudden, everything fit.
Karla	Karla finished untangling the rest of the threads with something akin to relief. One down, one to go, though it would be easier now, since Emma's body now had its proper mind back and wouldn't cling so hard to Bobby's as it left. Of course, Bobby wasn't an experienced telepath, so that part might be a little harder, but that was a bridge she'd cross when she got to it. "Okay, almost there," she said, stretching her neck and back muscles. It was all phantom pain and mental fatigue here in the dreamscape, but stretching felt good anyhow.
Bobby	He wasn't an experienced telepath, no, but he'd had some experience bringing both Professor Xavier and Jean back from the psychic plane, so he knew a little of what was expected of him. "Ready when you are."
Sookie	Sookie reached out again, strengthening that bond that she'd ignored as she'd been working on the knots. She wasn't stretching -- she wasn't focusing on this projection of herself in the dreamscape much at all. Her voice was vague, her eyes closed as she instructed. "Use the cord like Emma did, honey," she murmured. "I've got you, and we'll be working to make it easy on you, so everyone comes apart and goes back where they should. Just focus on memories that are only yours. Things you wouldn't share with Emma."
Bobby	"Stuff that's only me," Bobby muttered, concentrating on all sorts of things. Pranking Scott with Warren's help, that stupid guy made out of bees, dancing with Sookie at Prom... with every memory, he seemed to get closer and closer to feeling right again.
Karla	Hey, Karla couldn't be comforted by Bobby's experiences in the psychic plane when she didn't know about any of them to begin with. Fewer secrets, Bobby. Fewer secrets. For her part, Karla was untangling his mind from Emma's body, giving him more freedom and speed with every unraveled knot. "Almost there," she said through gritted teeth. "Just a few more..."
Emma	Emma flexed her metalphysical fingers and grinned, and suddenly a surge of fresh power washed through their web. "Don't worry, darlings, Auntie Emma is here with the refreshments." Having her power back was nice.
Sookie	"Thank God," Sookie breathed, smiling as she shifted again, working Bobby's threads with the lightest of touches, once again. "Like a breath of fresh air, having you back."
Karla	"Mother Night," Karla agreed with a groan. "No more vacations in other people's bodies. It's a new rule I just made up." She let go of where she'd been supporting Bobby during his trek down the memory-rope, handing her burden over to Emma to take. This freed up more of her concentration to finish up untangling the last of their threads. "There!" she said, exultantly, as the last thread snapped back to Bobby.
Bobby	If someone asked Bobby to describe what he felt just then, he would've said it felt a bit like snapping a dislocated joint back into place. The unfamiliar power, what little he'd been able to grasp of it, was gone, and in its place was the ice. Cold, familiar, his. Back in the physical world, a thin layer of ice rippled up around Bobby's body in the chair, sharp spikes briefly forming before they melted back into nothing.
Emma	Emma surveyed the memory rope in her hands, giving it a firm shake to make sure Bobby wasn't going to fall out of his body again before nodding in satisfaction. "I think that is that," Emma stated. "Now, I believe all that is left is for us to wake up." She focused, and a door appeared in the middle of the preserve. "I vote for the easy way out," she said, pulling it open and gesturing for the others to proceed her. "After you."
Karla	"As soon as Sookie confirms your brains are back to doing whatever it is that they do when all is well, I'll be the first one out of here," Karla promised. "I want a drink and a shower and a three or four meals."
Sookie	"They are. Emma's buzzing like another telepath, and Bobby sounds like Bobby," Sookie said, the last bit of dreaminess leaving her voice as her eyes snapped open again. She smiled, a bit of the tension leaving her posture. "I want...all of those things, too. And maybe a nap."
Emma	Emma just sighed melodramatically and shook her head. "Why does no one ever believe me when I say things?" she asked, looking up at the sky and spreading her arms helplessly. "Why does no one trust that I know what I'm doing or what I'm talking about? I feel sad. Unloved, even."
Bobby	"Says she who went on a joyride in someone else's body," Bobby couldn't resist pointing out before tossing a cocky smirk Emma's way and stepping through the doorway.
Karla	"Unloved my ass," Karla snarked, stepping aside to shoo Sookie through the doorway first. "Really unloved would mean I'd rescind my offer of honey-pear brandy and ice cream tonight. Which I haven't yet..." And with a wave, she was through the door and back in the real world. "As soon as Emma perks up, we'll release the link?" she suggested, trying not to yawn a bit.
Sookie	"Uh huh," Sookie said, a little dazed. Mostly because she was getting more tired by the minute, at this rate. She reached for Bobby's hand again, now in their physical bodies, and rolled her shoulders. "Jesus Christ, Shepherd of Judea, Karla, how the hell do y'all do stuff like that all the time and not just drop?"
Emma	Ugh. Boys. And nasty little girls who bribed with ice cream. Emma checked the foundations of everything one more time before nodding with satisfaction and stepping through the door. One moment she was pulling it shut behind her, the next she was aware of the beeping machines in the clinic. "I knew what I was doing, Drake," she protested sleepily. "I used your powers just fine and I was going to get it fixed. I was looking for Hank. My Hank, not your Hank, I don't know where you Hank is." Someone still had a bit of a concussion.
Bobby	"Manhattan somewhere," Bobby informed Emma around a yawn as he gripped Sookie's hand in his own. "Doin' great big furry science nerd things. Now, I know I just spent a bunch of hours asleep or whatever but oh my god, home, bed, best plan ever."
Sookie	"Food first," Sookie told him, leaning a little against his shoulder. "You've been through a lot. I want pancakes. And beer. I kind of want lots of beer. And then we can sleep until Wednesday." She paused, and added, "'Cause there's class on Wednesday. That's important." ...someone should feed the Sookie, soon.
Karla	"Power, practice, and sheer bone-headed idiocy," Karla said in answer to Sookie's question. "Though you might want to check with Ben and Emma about what happens when I decide to push myself too hard." Getting rid of the link between them was easy, like letting go of one another's hands. Karla let the psychic landscape fade and felt a little sturdier as she absorbed some of the remaining power in it. "All right, as the only Healer among us, my word is law. Sookie, Bobby, bed for both of you. Dinner sometime soon, but a nap won't hurt. For the love of the Darkness, though, order in. No reason to cook on top of all this. Emma? First let me take care of that concussion and then the same goes for you, okay?" She gave them all a tired smile. "I'll call the boyos after and let them know Bobby's back in his own body again." And then she was going to follow her own instructions and fall kind of flat for awhile. "We did good."