Strength to Protect

16 || he/him

yes, he’s a doctor, yes, he’s 16, yes, he exists—

do you want a mom friend who’s also a baby?? then have i got the boy for you!! someone please be his parent. his dad sucks. i love his mom but his dad is literally awful. pls parent him.

saved the world once when he was 15 and now he’s 16 and BACK AT IT AGAIN

everyone calls him a do-gooder. everyone. this is why he keeps saving the world.

he’s seen...so many people die. including a very close friend. and then i pulled him from that point so he’s, uh...he’s...

has a girlfriend back home who’s a nurse turned journalist

overtly polite unless you’re close/tell him not to

canonically has an essence that tastes like strawberries...?

will infodump about magic/science/whatever from his home world if given half the chance

“On the train…?” Ed runs his hands through his hair. Oh. “Nah, it was a scrape back in Cotes, I was on my way home. Train’s safe.”

Hopefully he didn’t freak the poor guy out, he seems nervous… though he doesn’t know if that’s the cut or the idea of a fight breaking out on the train. Maybe he’s just shy.

The moment he sees the light from the healing magic, however, that line of thinking is gone– instantly replaced with a newfound curiosity as to how exactly he’s able to do that.

“Healing artes?” He leans in closer, trying to get a good look at the glow. Wow… it doesn’t look like any alchemy he’s seen before. “Is that like Alkahestry? I know there’s all sorts of science and magic–” it still feels strange to say magic as if it’s real– “here that I haven’t heard of. But being able to heal someone like that is incredible!” His smile fades a little when he looks up, realizing through all that he hadn’t even answered the question.

“Uh, yeah, I don’t mind. It’s really no big deal, I’ve had worse, but uh… if you want to. ‘Sides, I’m really interested to see how it works if you don’t mind showing me.”

"Alkahestry?"

The word is unfamiliar, and enough to give Jude moment's pause. But he channels the spirit arte again and reaches out towards the stranger as glowing gold light surrounds them both for a brief moment before the cut is healed.

"They're a type of spirit arte...I think there are some martial artes that can be used for healing, like guardian field, but—" Jude cuts himself off abruptly. Right. This guy probably didn't know what spirit artes were.

"So...where I'm from, some people can use spirit artes. A special part of our brain known as the 'mana lobe' allows us to exchange mana with spirits for their powers. Howe's egg principle describes it as... 'If you leave an egg in an empty box and said egg gets crushed, the cause must lie within the egg itself.' Therefore, once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth. We had known for a long time that we had access to powers beyond what humans can do, but...we didn't discover spirits for a while longer. It's a symbiotic relationship; they give us their power in exchange for mana, which keeps them alive."

Jude realizes that he's been rambling, and still hasn't properly introduced himself. But maybe this guy cared more about spirit arte explanations than his name...? He could hope.

Meme | JENNA MARBLES SENTENCE STARTERS

Uh oh. Jude’s definitely been staring for too long.

“N-No! Your face is fine! Finer than fine. It’s--everything is fine.”

The problem is Jude realizing just how bi he is, yet again. 

Meme | JENNA MARBLES SENTENCE STARTERS

“Well, uh...”

His cooking couldn’t be that bad, right? Mr. Wright seemed like the type of person who-- Wait this guy once ate paint.

Jude didn’t have Recovery Ring available at the moment, so curing poison was out of the question. Especially since Elize wasn’t here to use Dispel either.

“Ah, thank you very much!”

        “That’s a surprise! I mean – that you’re just a regular doctor. You’re really good at it! ” your legs start to swing round before you talk, and then they keep on going when you do.

        “ Oh, that’s.. cool! I never knew you could do that. ” okay, to tell the truth: you’re not really getting the spirit art and channeling thing, since nobody at home does it, but you’ll pretend you are. it’s something you sort of need to get used to, anyways. “ I guess a lord works the same, anyways! At least, from how she sounds. Um.. question, though - are those spirits like.. ghosts? I don’t remember seeing anyone else when all of that happened. ”

Jude frowns at the question of spirits being like ghosts. They...weren’t, really, were they? After all, spirits had lives, and could die...and be resurrected through spirit fossils. 

“Well, no. Spirits are elemental beings. Most of them are lesser spirits...as far as we know there’s only five Great Spirits that are...” Still alive? Celsius had her spyrite, and he’d seen Volt and Aska... “Um...still around, I guess. There’s a spirit for fire, water, earth, wind, and...I guess she’s time and space.”

Whatever she was, Jude didn’t want to linger on it. 

Edward has confidence in Jude’s abilities as a doctor, absolutely, he’s always been the one he’s gone to whenever he’s injured ( often, although the kits make his trips less frequent. ) But, he’s not sure how much Jude would be able to help him with this. With automail mechanics back home, they’re well versed in surgical stuff as well as mechanical, but maybe he’s right. Maybe a doctor is better than nothing.

If anything, Edward could walk him through how to fix it. Extra hands might make it easier, probably. To Jude’s soft smile, Edward offers his own, although he’s a little embarrassed with the words that follow after it. I enjoy your company isn’t something he hears often, and it’s even less often that he actually makes friends with people. Jude is one, at least, Violet another, and it’s in these kind of instances where he thinks having them isn’t so bad. Having someone care for him apart from people he’s worked with or even his brother… it’s not so bad.

“You know what? Yeah, take a look at it.” He re-positions himself so the other can see, a better angle, and wonders what else he should say — something to keep the conversation going, so they don’t have to sit in silence, “Anyone else give you as much trouble as I have?”

Jude can’t help but laugh at Edward’s question. There are plenty of people who give him trouble, in so many ways. But here....

“Well, Leia gives me more than enough trouble back home.”

He can’t help but sigh over that. Perhaps it’s unfair to say Leia gives him the most trouble when Milla was the one that requires an excursion to the mines of just him and Leia and fighting a giant monster in order to get a spirit fossil. 

“But trust me, compared to the nine people I usually worry over back home, just having to take care of your constant injuries is a bit of a break.” 

The automail is extremely intriguing to Jude. He’s never seen a prosthetic quite like it. Even Balan just used a spyrix to help him after his injury. 

“So this doesn’t rely on spirits at all?” 

It’s a bit foolish of a question to ask, but Jude can’t stop himself before it comes out of his mouth. He knows things are different in Edward’s world, and they don’t use spirits, spyrites, or spyrixes at all. 

“It’s quite amazing...the people in your world have made some impressive advances in technology, to replicate human physiology so well...” 

Jude’s beginning to mumble under his breath now, caught up in ideas of how he could possibly use this technology back home. 

Maybe if he moves the groceries around on the counter every so often, Jude will think he knows what he’s doing. Honestly, looking at the stuff in front of them, he isn’t even sure what they’re making. But he’ll take a page out of Herr Forehead’s book and bluff his way through.

“We usually go out to eat,” Klavier shrugs. “Though we might break the bank on takeout if neither one of us knows how to cook…”

All the more reason for him to learn, he supposes. He watches Jude carefully, leaning on the counter. Honestly, he’s not sure how to be an older brother; he’s always been the younger one. But he’s going to make sure Jude takes care of himself!

“Helping others is important, but you have to look out for yourself, too! It’s important to find a balance.” His wisdom might be taken more seriously if he isn’t picking up random items from the counter while he dispenses it.

Jude’s completely aware that Klavier has no idea what he’s doing. He’s kind enough not to say anything, but still takes an onion from Klavier before setting it on the cutting board and cutting it slowly to demonstrate to Klavier how to properly go about it. Even if the onion makes Jude’s eyes water, at the very least it will keep him from having to explain if he gets emotional over something else. 

It probably won’t come to that. 

Probably. But with Klavier, who knows. 

“I guess I’m used to just not having the time. When the fate of my entire world is at risk, and it’s just me...Leia...” 

And Milla and Alvin. And Rowen and Elize (and Teepo). More recently, Ludger, Gaius, Muzét, and Elle had joined but... This wasn’t a group of people Jude felt was exactly suited to save the world.

He, Leia, Elize, and Elle were still children... Milla and Muzét had a bigger obligation, considering who they were. Alvin was old enough to take responsibility, even if he wasn’t...the most responsible person in the world. And of course Gaius and Rowen had experience to fall back on. But even Ludger just seemed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

A ragtag group of 10 kids and adults was at least an improvement from the 6 they had been before. 

Jude sighs, setting down his knife as he slides the now chopped onion into the plastic bowl with the rest of his vegetables.

It probably wasn’t a good sign that Jude and Edward kept meeting like this. But whenever there was trouble, Jude was sure to show up in order to help by healing or punching, whichever was required more. Jude didn’t even live in Golden Ward, but as soon as he received some texts (they weren’t even frantic, it was Edna) about what was happening, he had to head there immediately. 

Now he finds himself face to face with Edward after some well placed punches popped any balloons that dared to get too close. 

“It’s funny running into you here, Mr. Edward.” Jude says it with a tired smile, since fighting (even when he had done this voluntarily) is never his favorite thing to do. “At least it seems a bit different, last time sure was something, wasn’t it?”

Ludger feels his phone vibrate while he’s in the middle of making a dish at work, and decides to let it go to voicemail. It isn’t terribly busy in the restaurant right now so he can just call back whoever it is when he finishes this order. Once he’s made sure everything is right, he hands it over to the waitress and heads to the back room where he can hear better to check his phone. 

A missed call and a voicemail from Jude’s school. Oh, that can’t be good.

When he plays the message, it’s one of the school administrators saying that Jude isn’t feeling well and that Ludger needs to come pick him up. Again. Ludger sighs. This has to be what, the second time this month now? The message didn’t say what exactly was wrong, but knowing his little brother, Ludger can probably guess. He puts his phone back in his pocket and goes to find his manager to explain the situation. As per usual, they let him go without issue and wish Jude well. 

It doesn’t take him too long to make it over to the school, and he hears Jude trying to reassure him that everything’s alright before Ludger’s even fully opened the door to the nurse’s office. He certainly doesn’t look fine that’s for sure, way too pale for Ludger’s liking. Is he going to be able to walk all the way back home like this? Ludger can easily carry Jude if it comes to that, but he knows his brother will protest. He nods at the doctor’s instructions as he signs the form.

“Thank you for taking care of my brother. I’m sorry for the trouble.”

Then, turning to Jude, he says,

“Come on Jude, let’s go home. Are you gonna be alright to walk?”

Jude is very adamant that he can walk. He stands up, just to prove it, but the fact that he blacks out for a second probably doesn’t help his case. He can feel Dr. Valrieksts looking at him, so he decides to be vocal about his feelings before Ludger gets any ideas.

“I can walk! Seriously, Ludger, I’m f--”

Dr. Valrieksts clears his throat pointedly. 

“--ine to walk.” Jude finishes, his voice sounding a lot less confident than it was before. 

Dr. Valrieksts is already one step ahead of Jude, and hands his backpack to Ludger to carry. That, at the very least, is a fight Jude knows he won’t win. Better to let Ludger carry his bag full of heavy medical textbooks than carrying him home. 

“Thank you for picking him up,” Dr. Valrieksts says with a sigh, as this is a speech he’s given Ludger, Julius, and Julius’s partner many times before. “I apologize for making you come here from work, Mr. Kresnik. And as for you, Mr. Jude Kresnik, if I see you here tomorrow I will call your brother to take you home.”

With that threat, the doctor ushered them out of his office and waved goodbye with a very pointed look aimed at Jude as he and Ludger began walking home.