Hatter's Revenge (rewriting - read at own risk)

Ch. 4: What to Do?

Mad was beginning to stumble when he finally saw the lights blazing in the home of Maris Hare. Maris was an Aunimalis, of a species called Sungura, which were nothing like the Usagi as Maris had made quite clear the first time Mad had asked.

He tripped over nothing and suddenly found himself on his knees, vision sparkling. He looked down stupidly at his shoulder to find that the plug had worked itself loose as he walked and a slow pulse of blood was leaking from the neat hole in the front of his shoulder. Mad hadn't been able to even attempt to staunch the exit wound in his back which was most likely larger and more messy due to the flattening of the bullet as it passed through him.

Mad smiled a bit drunkenly and supposed that he should be glad that Rakta favored ball ammunition rather than the hollow point rounds that the Heart's Ace used. As his vision started to dim, he whispered, "Chesh."

After that, Mad remembered very little other than a sudden rush of jerky movement, the pain that accompanied it and then bright lights and a single calm voice amid a plethora of worried ones. Then there was a soft bed and rough fingers probing at the hole through his shoulder.

Mad decided that now was an acceptable time to give up on consciousness and he slipped into a blissfully still darkness.

When he woke up, he was a little surprised to find Alice sitting by his bed instead of Cheshire. He shifted, trying to remember exactly where he was and she shouted, "He's awake! Maris! Chesh! He's up!"

Her hands fluttered uselessly over the top of Mad and she said in a great rush, "Oh! I'm so glad you're finally awake. Cheshire and Maris found you in the gardens positively soaked in blood. All you said was 'Rakta' which I didn't understand but Cheshire and Maris seemed to and they carried you in here. Maris bandaged you up, although how I'll never know. It was absolutely ghastly! Cheshire's furious at you for going by yourself. Why did you take such a risk?! How are you feeling?"

Alice handed him a glass of water, which Mad took gratefully, feeling a little bewildered. He was still trying to catch up with everything Alice had said and and was about to answer when Cheshire burst into the room, followed by Maris.

"You stupid son of a bitch!" Chesh yelled, flailing his arms at Mad. "How could you?! You knew! Didn't you? You knew that this was going to happen so you went by yourself cause you're a goddamn war hero. Well you know what? I could care less! You ever do something so fucking stupid again I'll kill you myself!" Chesh heaved in a great breath and knelt at the side of the bed, burrowing his face into the covers at Mad's side, kneading the fabric with his claws.

Mad placed a hand on Chesh's head, who growled but relaxed a fraction at Mad's touch. He looked at Maris and said, "Are you going to yell at me too?"

Maris cast an amused look at Cheshire, but shook his head. His hair and long ears were tied back in a loose ponytail at the nape of his neck and were colored a grey-brown that was speckled liberally with white now that winter was ending. Maris looked at Mad with odd tan eyes and said, "No. But you're repaying me for the sheets you ruined and cleaning up the blood stains."

"Maris!" Alice said, horrified.

"Don't worry, dear, I know who I'm talking to. If Mad was that easily offended, he wouldn't have come here." Maris chuckled, then made his way over to Mad, who he poked with a delicately clawed finger. "If you can sit up, do so and I'll take a look at that shoulder."

Mad groaned but sat up and watched at Maris prodded at the mass of white bandages now enshrouding Mad's shoulder. "Alice, be a dear and fetch some clean wraps, along with that salve I used. I think it's in one of the cupboards." Maris said, beginning to unwrap Mad's shoulder.